LAWRENCE  J.  GUTTER 

Collection  of  Chicogoono 

THE   UNIVERSITY   OF   ILLINOIS 
AT  CHICAGO 

The  University  Library 


WILBUR  FISKE   MEMINGER. 


"The  Little   Man 
from  Chicago" 


The  Life  Story  of 
Wilbur  F.  Meminger 


BY  HIS  WIFE. 


ALLIANCE  PRESS  COMPANY 
692  EIGHTH  AVENUE 

NEW  YORK 


COPYRIGHTED,    1910 
BY  A.  B.  SIMPSON 


CONTENTS. 

Preface 9 

Introduction   II 

CHAPTER    I. 
His  Boyhood 17 

CHAPTER  II. 
His  Conversion   32 

CHAPTER  III. 
His  Business  Career 40 

CHAPTER  IV. 
A  Class  Leader 44 

CHAPTER  V. 
Evangelistic    Work    in    the    Methodist 

Church 55 

CHAPTER  VI. 
The  Baptism  of  the  Holy  Spirit 61 

CHAPTER  VII. 
I  Believe  in  the  Fourfold  Gospel 67 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
God   Heals 74 

CHAPTER  IX. 
Inspired  Petitions 85 

CHAPTER  X. 
The    Lord's    Coming 99 

CHAPTER  XL 
Missions 107 

CHAPTER  XII. 
Chicago  Work 113 

CHAPTER  XIII. 
Field   Work    120 

CHAPTER  XIV. 
Field  Work  (Continued) 132 

CHAPTER  XV. 
Called  Home   148 

CHAPTER  XVI. 
Funeral  Services   158 

CHAPTER  XVII. 
Tributes 174 


PREFACE. 

The  following  memoir  we  believe  needs  no 
introduction,  but,  like  its  subject,  is  able  to 
speak  for  itself.  It  has  been  said  of  the  great- 
est modern  biography,  Bos  well's  life  of  John- 
son, that  its  charm  consists  in  the  fact  that  he 
did  not  attempt  to  say  anything,  but  simply  let 
the  hero  do  all  the  speaking  himself.  The 
writer  of  the  following  memoir  is  glad  to  be 
able  to  hide  behind  an  array  of  facts  that  need 
comparatively  little  editing.  The  only  thing, 
perhaps,  that  needs  explanation  is  the  singular 
title.  To  those  who  knew  Wilbur  Meminger 
no  such  explanation  is  necessary,  for  the 
phrase  was  so  often  on  his  lips  that  it  seemed 
to  fit  the  man  as  nothing  else  could. 

The  origin  of  the  expression  is  connected 
with  the  introduction  to  his  great  work  in  Chi- 
cago as  superintendent  of  the  Christian  and 
Missionary  Alliance.  Suddenly  introduced  in 
a  great  convention  as  their  superintendent,  he 
so  deeply  realized  the  vastness  of  the  respon- 
sibility and  his  own  insufficiency,  that  for  a 
little  he  sank  under  the  weight  of  the  burden 
and  asked  to  be  excused  from  even  speaking 
until  he  had  a  little  time  to  recover  his  breath. 


io       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

Then  the  intense  realization  of  the  greatness  of 
the  work  and  the  smallness  of  the  man  took 
such  possession  of  him  that  ever  afterwards  he 
described  himself  as  "the  little  man  from  Chi- 
cago." It  was  not  an  affectation  or  a  phrase 
with  him;  but  a  genuine  spirit  of  self-abase- 
ment like  that  of  the  great  apostle  whom  he 
loved  so  closely  to  follow,  and  he  took  the 
name  of  "Paul  the  Little"  because  he  really 
felt  that  He  had  not  only  been  "the  chief  of 
sinners,"  but  that  he  was  "less  than  the  least 
of  all  saints." 

But  we  are  quite  sure  that  after  our  read- 
ers have  finished  his  life  story  they  will  have 
a  new  revelation  of  the  Master's  words  "The 
last  shall  be  first;  he  that  will  be  chief  among 
you  let  him  be  the  servant  of  all."  In  a  very 
real  and  unique  way  Wilbur  Meminger  was 
truly  a  great  life  and  his  passing  has  left  a 
lasting  void. 

A.  B.  SIMPSON. 


INTRODUCTION. 

"Blessed  are  the  dead  which  die  in  the 
Lord,  from  henceforth!  Yea,  saith  the 
Spirit:  That  they  may  rest  from  their  la- 
bors; and  their  works  do  follow  them"  (Rev. 
xiv.  13). 

This  seems  to  be  the  only  instance  where 
the  word  "die"  is  used  of  saints  in  the  New 
Testament,  after  the  resurrection  of  our 
Lord.  He  "abolished  death  and  brought  life 
and  immortality  to  light"  and  "from  hence- 
forth" we  have  such  expressions  as  Stephen 
"fell  asleep";  Paul,  "absent  from  the  body, 
present  with  the  Lord."  Peter,  "put  off  this 
tabernacle." 

Not  only  so,  but  those  who  "live  Christ"  and 
"die  in  the  Lord,"  "rest  from  their  labors; 
but  their  works  follow  them."  The  labors — 
"trying  toils" — cease,  but  the  works — fruitful 
activities — continue  after  one  has  passed  on 
"to  be  with  Christ." 

When  Wilbur  Fisk  Meminger  died  in  the 
Lord,  as  in  Him  he  lived,  his  active  life  and 
devoted  service  did  not  cease — his  works  do 
follow.  The  Lord  of  the  harvest  still  delights 
to  use  him  as  one  of  His  "harvest  hands," 


12       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

as  he  often  was  wont  to  say,  "to  cut  a  swath 
in  Hiis  harvest  field."  And  could  we  see  it 
as  God  sees,  we  might  find  that  the  work 
and  witness  of  our  beloved  brother  and  fel- 
low-laborer are  more  extensive  and  fruitful 
than  when  he  wrought  in  his  earthly  taber- 
nacle. 

The  compilation  and  circulation  of  this 
memoir,  by  his  wife,  is  for  the  glory  of  God, 
in  multiplying  and  perpetuating  the  testi- 
mony and  triumph  of  our  brother's  beauti- 
ful career  of  godliness  and  usefulness.  Dur- 
ing most  of  the  time  covered  by  his  service 
in  connection  with  the  Christian  and  Mis- 
sionary Alliance,  Mrs.  Meminger  accom- 
panied her  husband  in  his  campaigns  of  con- 
ventions in  various  parts  of  the  United 
States  and  Canada,  and  was  truly  a  help- 
mate to  him  in  all  his  labors.  It  is,  there- 
fore, fitting  that  she  be  thus  identified  with 
the  continuation  of  his  ministry — "the  works 
that  follow" — in  sending  forth  this  volume 
to  inspire  and  encourage  others  in  the  way 
of  righteousness  and  fruitfulness. 

The  father  of  Wilbur  Meminger  was  a 
minister  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church, 
of  marked  piety,  whose  stately  form  and  sol- 
emn, but  stirring  sermons,  are  among  my 


Introduction  13 

early  recollections.  The  father's  brother, 
"Uncle  John,"  with  his  wife,  is  still  living, 
past  four  score  years  old;  a  man  of  sterling 
uprightness,  a  leading  layman  in  the  church 
for  most  of  his  long  life,  and  has  a  son  who 
is  in  the  ministry.  They  were  neighbors  of 
ours  in  Pennsylvania  for  many  years,  now 
living  in  Oregon,  where  it  was  my  privi- 
lege to  visit  them  some  weeks  ago  and  talk 
over  past  events,  the  most  sacred  and  touch- 
ing one  being  the  departure  of  Wilbur  to  be 
with  the  Lord. 

My  acquaintance  with  Wilbur  F.  Memin- 
ger  dates  from  about  1892,  shortly  after  we 
(Mrs.  Senft  and  myself)  opened  a  full  gos- 
pel work  in  Altoona,  Pa.,  which  was  after- 
wards organized  as  one  of  the  first  Alliance 
branches  in  Pennsylvania.  Elsewhere  in 
this  memoir,  brief  mention  is  made  of  what 
transpired  during  those  early  days  of  our 
association  with  him. 

Living  in  Tyrone,  only  fourteen  miles 
from  Altoona,  Mr.  Meminger,  with  others, 
often  met  with  us  in  our  meetings,  and  he 
would  never  shrink  from  giving  a  message 
or  witnessing,  with  a  clear  note  and  sonor- 
ous voice,  to  the  grace  and  power  of  God, 
while  at  the  same  time  he  was  humble  and 


14       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

teachable,  learning  the  way  of  life  more  per- 
fectly, especially  along  the  lines  of  the  gos- 
pel for  the  body  and  the  gospel  of  the  King- 
dom. Soon  regular  meetings  were  opened 
in  Tyrone.  Thus  our  dear  brother,  still  in 
business  and  active  in  the  Miethodist  Epis- 
copal Church,  yet  loyally  standing  by  the 
Alliance  meetings,  was  being  prepared  for 
the  busy  and  blessed  years  of  service  that 
followed. 

His  striking  and  sound  conversion,  fol- 
lowing real  Bible  conviction,  the  clear-cut 
experience  of  a  second  work  of  grace,  sanc- 
tification,  which  led  to  a  thorough  consecra- 
tion of  his  life  to  God  for  service,  set  on  fire 
by  the  Holy  Spirit  for  souls  and  his  wide 
and  successful  evangelistic  ministry,  pre- 
pared him  for  the  deepening  and  mellowing 
influences  of  the  Alliance  fellowship,  which 
more  fully  equipped  him  for  the  wider  work 
of  his  remaining  years. 

No  printed  volumes  of  sermons  have  been 
left  by  this  gifted  servant  of  God,  but  his 
unique,  stirring  and  Scriptural  messages, 
with  outbursts  of  inspiring  and  inimitable 
eloquence,  like  the  rolling  thunder  and  the 
flash  of  lightning,  and  again  as  gentle  and 


Introduction  15 

tender  as  the  morning  dew, — who  can  for- 
get them  ? 

One  of  his  last  addresses  given  in  the  Gos- 
pel Tabernacle,  New  York,  during  the  con- 
vention, was  on  the  text,  "Which  things  the 
angels  desire  to  look  into"  (I.  Peter  i.  12). 
It  was  marked  by  the  unction  of  the  Spirit 
and  given  in  his  characteristic  manner,  only 
with  a  deeper  pathos,  power  and  tenderness, 
as  he  depicted  the  love  of  God,  the  scenes 
of  Calvary  and  the  mysteries  of  Redemption, 
revealed  and  made  real  to  the  penitent  and 
believing  sinner — "which  things  the  angels 
desire  to  look  into." 

The  blessing  and  beauty  of  the  Lord  was 
to  this  man  of  God  the  cause  and  necessary 
condition  of  his  faithful  and  fruitful  serv- 
ice. This  is  the  thought  of  the  Psalmist : 

"Let  the  beauty  of  the  Lord  our  God  be 
upon  us,  and  establish  Thou  the  work  of 
our  hands." 

This  record  is  earnestly  recommended  to 
the  many  friends  of  our  fellow  servant,  with 
the  prayer  that  the  reading  of  it  shall  stimu- 
late many  of  God's  children  to  live  and  la- 
bor for  the  speedy  coming  of  the  Bride- 
groom when  the  sevenfold  promise  shall  be 
fulfilled: 


16       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

"And  there  shall  be  no  more  curse ; 
But  the  throne  of  God  and  the  Lamb  shall 

be  in  it ; 

And  His  servants  shall  serve  Him; 
And  they  shall  see  His  face; 
And  His  name  shall  be  in  their  foreheads. 
And  there  shall  be  no  night  there; 
And  they  shall  reign  forever  and  ever." 

— Revelation  xxii.  3-5. 
FREDERICK  HERBERT  SENFT. 
Philadelphia,  Pa.,  April  12,  1910. 


WILP.UR    MEMINGER, 
AGE  l6  MONTHS. 


CHAPTER  I. 
HIS   BOYHOOD. 

IT  seems  to  be  a  law  of  nature  that  back  of 
every  effect  we  find  a  cause;  so  it  is  but 
natural  to  trace  the  ancestry  back  of 
every  son  of  genius. 

Wilbur  Fisk  Meminger  was  born  in 
Hedgesville,  Va.,  April  29th,  1851. 

Back  of  Wilbur  Meminger  was  a  father, 
William  McKean  Mieminger,  who  was  an 
intellectual  giant,  a  man  of  deep  spirituality. 
A  Hebrew,  Greek  and  Latin  scholar  he  was 
ever  ready  to  give  his  children  instruction. 
He  was  of  colonial  descent,  Thomas  Mc- 
Kean being  a  relative,  and  others  of  Puri- 
tan stock.  He  was  a  minister  for  over  forty 
years,  and  his  great  success  in  the  church 
was  no  doubt  due  in  part  to  the  fact  that  his 
pulpit  life  and  his  home  life  were  in  perfect 
harmony.  The  records  show  that  four 
thousand  souls  were  won  to  Christ  by  him. 

William  M'eminger  married  Rebecca 
Watts.  Born  and  reared  in  Virginia  she 
had  the  soft  voice,  sweet  manner  and  win- 
ning personality  of  the  Virginians.  Al- 


i8       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

though  educated  in  the  best  schools  she  was 
a  home-loving  woman,  and  here  she  ap- 
peared at  her  best.  Her  father,  Rev.  James 
Watts,  was  a  pioneer  preacher,  a  scholar,  a 
poet,  a  descendant  of  Isaac  Watts,  the  au- 
thor of  many  hymns.  He  was  also  an  inti- 
mate friend  and  helper  of  Francis  Asbury. 

Five  children  were  born  to  the  couple,  two 
boys  and  three  girls,  and  coming  from  Meth- 
odist ancestors  it  was  not  strange  that  they 
should  name  their  firstborn  Wilbur  Fisk  af- 
ter one  of  the  most  godly  and  highly  cul- 
tured ministers  of  the  church,  Rev.  Wilbur 
Fisk,  D.D.,  President  of  the  Wesleyan  Uni- 
versity. 

Sarah  Meminger  Heaton,  a  sister  to  Wil- 
bur, in  recalling  their  childhood  days,  says : 

"The  first  recollections  of  my  brother  are 
at  our  home  in  Middletown,  Md.  The  house 
was  a  long  rambling  one,  with  wide  porches, 
where  he  and  I  rode  horse  back  and  went 
fishing,  in  our  imagination.  Rev.  E.  J. 
Gray,  D.D.,  then  a  young  man,  made  his 
home  with  us  and  added  no  little  to  our 
pleasure  with  his  stories  of  Joseph,  David 
and  of  Paul.  'Six  days  shalt  thou  labor'  was 
the  rule  taught  and  lived  at  this  Methodist 
home,  and  on  Sunday  all  toys  and  working 


His  Boyhood  19 

tools  were  put  aside.  Brother  in  his  best 
suit,  we  girls  in  our  crimson  merinos  went 
to  service,  as  the  baby  kept  mother  at  home. 
After  dinner  'The  Ladies'  Repository,'  with 
its  wonderful  engravings,  'Pilgrim's  Prog- 
ress/ with  its  Doubting  Castle,  and  'The 
Story  of  the  Bible'  made  the  afternoons  a 
delight. 

"As  I  look  back  upon  those  peaceful  Sab- 
baths I  see  through  the  mists  of  years  fath- 
er, mother,  brother  and  sister  about  the  fire- 
place holding  family  worship.  After  read- 
ing the  Scripture  we  arose  and  sang  one  of 
the  sweet  old  hymns,  our  childish  treble 
mingling  with  the  deeper  tones  of  father  and 
brother. 

"As  a  student  Wilbur  attended  the  best 
schools,  where  he  developed  a  rather  ex- 
traordinary talent  for  oratory  and  elocution. 
Nothing  pleased  us  more  than  to  have  him 
recite  in  the  evenings.  One  of  our  favorites 
was  Edgar  Allan  Poe's  'Raven.'  So  thrilling 
and  real  were  his  portrayal  that  we  looked 
above  the  door  expecting  to  see  the  unwel- 
come visitor.  We  vigorously  applauded 
'Bingen  on  the  Rhine,'  'Charge  of  the  Light 
Brigade,'  and  others. 


20       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

"The  following  was  an  essay  written  by 
him  at  the  age  of  nine  or  ten : 

"  'THE  FOURTH  OF  JULY. 

"  'On  this  day  the  American  Eagle  soared 
aloft.  This  day  I  think  is  worthy  to  be  the 
first  day  of  the  year,  it  matters  not  in  what 
immediate  month  such  an  illustrious  day 
comes.  The  Declaration  of  the  Indepen- 
dence of  the  United  States  was  declared.  It 
is  hardly  worth  while  to  mention  the  names 
of  the  signers  of  this  Declaration,  but  I  will 
merely  state  that  I  was  not  fortunate  enough 
to  sign  it.  I  always  celebrate  it  by  staying 
out  of  school  and  getting  behind  in  my 
classes,  so  you  see  I  make  some  sacrifice. 

"  'I  think  the  President  should  take  his 
seat  on  this  illustrious  day.  We,  the  citi- 
zens, should  give  three  or  four  cheers  extra ; 
we  should  have  an  extra  dinner  and  an  ex- 
tra session  of  Sunday  school  in  the  after-r 
noon,  and  build  bonfires  all  night,  give  three 
or  four  cheers  for  that  great  man,  the  Father 
of  his  Country,  George  Washington.  Every 
family  should  hang  out  a  flag  or  two,  or  if 
they  can't  afford  that  they  should  give  three 
or  four  cheers  for  the  Fourth  of  July.  It  is 
best  not  to  call  anything  to  raise  your  spir- 


His  Boyhood  21 

its,  lest  you  get  them  too  high.  I  have  seen 
people  whose  spirits  were  rather  too  high  on 
such  occasions. 

"  'After  having  exhorted  you  to  be  patri- 
otic, but  sober,  I  will  close  by  saying  three 
or  four  cheers  for  the  Fourth  of  July. 

"  'WILBUR  F.  M|EMINGER.' 

"The  following  was  a  farewell  address 
written  by  him  at  the  age  of  sixteen  when 
leaving  the  Bel  Air  Academy,  Maryland. 

"  'FAREWELL  ADDRESS  BY  w.  F.  MEMINGER. 

"  'Honored  Teacher : 

"  'Time's  rolling  stream  is  ever  bearing  us 
onward.  The  time  has  come,  at  last,  when  I 
must  bid  you  a  final  farewell. 

"  'As  I  gaze  upon  your  countenance, 
which  has  become  so  familiar  to  me,  a  flood 
tide  of  emotion  sweeps  over  my  saddened 
heart.  Must  I  say  farewell  to  you,  my  more 
than  teacher?  You  have  honored  me  with 
your  friendship,  and  I  feel  a  debt  of  grati- 
tude for  your  counsel,  confidence,  and  affec- 
tionate instruction,  which  words  cannot  ex- 
press. The  endearing  relations  which  we 
have  mutually  sustained  must  now  be  sev- 
ered. You  have  labored  unceasingly  to  pro- 
mote my  greatest  good,  and  highest  happi- 


22       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

ness,  and  from  my  grateful  heart,  I  thank 
you.     May  you  be  abundantly  rewarded  in 
this  life,  and  in  that  which  is  to  come. 
"  'Beloved  Schoolmates : 

"  'Sad  indeed  are  the  partings  which  sep- 
arate us,  and  send  us  forth  by  different  path- 
ways into  the  great  thoroughfares  of  life. 
We  have  journeyed  together  pleasantly  dur- 
ing my  stay  in  Bel  Air,  and  ere  we  part,  I 
would  say  to  you,  Be  encouraged  by  past 
experience  to  press  onward  through  every 
varying  hour.  The  path  which  lies  before 
you  may  be  difficult  of  ascent;  and  should 
you  grow  weary  by  the  way,  should  the  in- 
spiring "Excelsior"  falter  on  your  lips,  lift 
up  your  eyes,  and  gather  strength  to  go  for- 
ward, for  the  treasures  which  are  found  only 
at  the  summit.  There  is  a  long  path  to  be 
trodden,  and  many  shadows  will  gather  over 
it,  but  journey  not  through  this  beautiful 
world,  with  your  eyes  closed  to  its  sweet, 
inspiring  influences. 

"  'Turn  not  wearily  away  from  the  pres- 
ent, looking  forward  to  the  days  to  come; 
but  improve  each  passing  moment,  so  that 
you  will  have  no  cause  for  regret  in  after 
life  for  having  wasted  your  golden  mo- 
ments. 


His  Boyhood  23 

"  'My  hope  and  my  prayer  shall  be,  that 
you  may  succeed  in  every  department  of 
study,  and  reflect  honor  on  whatever  insti- 
tution you  may  be  connected  with. 

"  'Lovingly  and  hopefully  I  say  farewell. 
May  heaven  bless  you  all.  Farewell.' 

"In  the  backyard  of  our  house  was  a  large 
spring,  quite  deep.  One  day  as  I  was  sail- 
ing boats  of  paper,  I  plunged  in;  brother 
heard  the  spash  and  came  running,  caught 
me  as  I  was  sinking  again  and  carried  me  to 
mother.  Every  one  remarked  on  the  great 
presence  of  mind  he  had  shown,  though 
quite  young,  and  I  felt  proud  of  my  brave 
elder  brother  who  had  saved  my  life. 

"From  Middletown  the  family  moved  to 
Liberty,  M!d.  Already  the  mutterings  of 
war  were  heard ;  many  were  the  discussions 
held  by  the  leading  men  of  the  town,  as  to 
the  best  measures  to  be  pursued.  The  first 
shot  which  smote  the  side  of  Fort  Sumter, 
echoed  from  shore  to  shore,  and  wakened 
the  patriotism  of  many  a  soul.  The  lad  Wil- 
bur, at  the  age  of  twelve,  felt  his  blood 
stirred.  With  heart  glowing  with  bravery, 
and  his  young  mind  alive  with  the  splendid 
thought  of  fighting  for  his  country,  he  and  a 


24       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

boy  friend  left  home  and  offered  themselves 
as  soldiers  for  the  Union.  Of  course,  being 
so  young  they  were  rejected,  but  in  a  kind- 
ly way,  and  were  sent  home.  Often  in  later 
life  when  referring  to  this  incident  in  a  ser- 
mon, he  would  say,  'I  did  not  feel  near  so 
brave  when  I  marched  into  my  father's 
study  to  settle  accounts  for  leaving  home, 
for  he  believed  like  Solomon  to  spare  the 
rod  was  to  spoil  the  child.  So,  while  I  had 
hoped  to  carry  the  flag  it  was  in  a  different 
way;  but  .1  certainly  wore  black  and  blue 
stripes  for  several  days  after  the  surrender 
in  the  study.'  Nevertheless  this  showed  the 
resolve  and  courage,  and  the  large  aim  of 
this  boy.  It  was  not  a  childish  excitement, 
but  aroused  principles  ;  and  just  as  the  voice 
of  suffering  ones  called  to  him  from  the 
South,  where  the  soil  was  drenched  with 
blood,  and  nameless  graves  were  scattered; 
so,  in  later  years,  the  voice  of  sin-sick  souls 
called  to  him  from  the  city,  the  cabin,  the 
dark  den  of  sin,  as  well  as  from  the  homes 
of  the  rich  and  cultured,  until  his  voice  had 
been  heard  in  every  State  of  the  Union  save 
one,  and  his  influence  had  built  up  places  of 
worship  in  this  and  foreign  lands. 

"Another  incident  which  shows  the  moral 


\YIL15UR    MEMINGER, 
AGE    12   YEARS. 


His  Boyhood  25 

fibre  and  innate  nobility  of  the  youth  oc- 
curred soon  after  this.  The  itinerant  wheel 
in  its  revolution  had  sent  the  family  to 
Westminster,  Md.,  not  far  from  Baltimore, 
and  troops  were  passing  through  constant- 
ly. It  was  a  well-known  fact  that  at  the 
Methodist  parsonage  soldiers  were  fed  and 
cared  for.  The  soldiers  were  passing 
through  one  day  and  one  of  them  asked  the 
bright  eyed  preacher's  son  to  go  to  the  hotel 
near  by  and  get  his  canteen  filled  with 
liquor,  at  the  same  time  handing  him  a  ten 
dollar  bill  and  adding,  'Keep  what  is  left.' 
Looking  up  into  his  face  the  boy  said,  'Sir, 
I  cannot  do  it;  it  would  be  wrong;  but  my 
mother  has  good  hot  soup  ready  for  you.' 
In  a  few  moments  he  had  placed  a  bowl  of 
steaming  soup  into  the  hands  of  the  half 
sick  soldier  who  ate  it  with  a  relish.  A 
hearty  'Thank  you'  was  reward  enough,  but 
when  the  soldier  said,  Til  send  this  money 
home,'  Wilbur  felt  happy  indeed. 

"So  when  owing  to  his  great  popularity 
years  afterward  he  was  urged  to  come  to 
the  front  in  the  political  circle  of  his  city,  he 
felt  he  could  not  conscientiously  do  so,  but 
preferred  the  reward  of  a  humble  evangel- 
ist whose  going  to  and  fro  were  the  move- 


26       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

ments  of  God's  own  loom  and  shuttle  as  he 
wove  the  fabrics  of  surrendered  lives." 

Wilbur  had  a  cousin  whom  he  loved  dear- 
ly. They  were  nearly  the  same  age.  This 
cousin,  now  the  Rev.  James  Watts  Shoaff, 
is  a  Presiding  Elder  in  the  California  Meth- 
odist Conference  South.  Just  a  few  months 
prior  to  his  home  call  Wilbur  Meminger 
visited  this  cousin  and  together  they  went 
over  the  scenes  of  their  boyhood.  They 
loved  each  other  dearly  and  in  recalling 
some  of  their  boyhood  days  Mr.  Shoaff 
writes : 

"My  sainted  cousin,  Rev.  Wilbur  F. 
Meminger,  came  into  this  world  just  one 
year  before  the  writer.  In  babyhood  and 
childhood  we  were  much  together.  Never 
were  two  boys  more  completely  mated. 
Such  a  thing  as  a  quarrel  was  never  known 
between  us.  We  had  much  that  was  in 
common.  We  were  the  grandsons  of  one 
of  the  early  Methodist  preachers  of  the  Bal- 
timore Conference,  the  Rev.  James  Watts. 
We  were  both  the  sons  of  Methodist 
preachers  and  were  proud  to  be  recognized 
as  such.  Wilbur  was  the  soul  of  honor  and 
frankness.  He  was  as  pure  as  the  morning 
air.  He  was  as  full  of  fun  as  a  luscious 


His  Boyhood  27 

orange  is  full  of  juice,  and  as  generous  as  a 
mountain  stream.  He  would  never  keep  the 
larger  portion  for  himself.  He  would  di- 
vide what  he  had  with  his  playmates  with  a 
royal  generosity.  If  he  teased  it  was  with 
merry  laughter.  I  do  not  remember  of  ever 
seeing  him  in  a  sulky  mood. 

"When  his  father  was  stationed  in  Fros- 
burg,  Md.,  upon  one  occasion  our  parents 
took  us  with  them  to  Mount  Pisgah,  where 
we  spent  several  days  with  friends.  It  was 
midwinter.  We  had  the  coasting  of  our 
lives.  We  coasted  downhill  and  snow- 
balled each  other  going  up.  Wilbur's 
cheeks  were  like  roses  and  his  dark  brown 
eyes  flashed  with  delight.  I  seem  to  hear 
his  voice  to-day  as  it  echoed  amid  the  silent, 
snow-clad  hills. 

"In  the  summer  days  when  we  happened 
to  be  together  he  delighted  in  gathering  wild 
flowers  and  chasing  butterflies.  It  was  a 
delight  for  him  to  find  a  wasp's  nest.  When 
he  did  he  never  ceased  to  war  a  good  war- 
fare. Somehow  Wilbur  and  I  seemed  to  be 
wasp-proof.  How  he  would  laugh  and 
chuckle  to  see  the .  other  boys  dip  their 
heads  and  run  for  shelter.  He  would  cry, 
'Drop  to  the  ground  and  they  will  go  over.' 


28       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

"Climb !  It  seemed  to  me  he  could  climb 
like  a  squirrel.  A  cherry  tree  was  his  de- 
light. The  boy  who  was  afraid  to  clirnb  did 
not  lack  for  cherries,  for  if  they  were  in  the 
tree  Wilbur  would  be  sure  to  shower  them 
down. 

"What  royal  times  we  had  hunting  chest- 
nuts !  When  the  burrs  had  opened  and  the 
winds  had  shaken  the  trees  we  were  there 
early  to  gather  the  nuts.  When  we  had 
gathered  a  good  supply  we  would  have  a 
chestnut  boil  or  a  chestnut  roast.  We  were 
specially  anxious  for  our  parents  to  enjoy 
them,  not  only  because  we  desired  to  have 
them  enjoy  them,  but  because  we  would  be 
:ikely  to  get  permission  to  go  on  another 
outing. 

"The  first  year  of  the  war  between  the 
States,  Wilbur  and  I  were  together  for  sev- 
eral months.  Wilbur  was  Union.  I  was 
Rebel,  and  yet  our  love  was  the  same.  We 
played  soldier  together  under  the  circum- 
stances with  peculiar  avidity — an  avidity 
that  was  void  of  acrimony.  The  banner  that 
floated  over  us  was  love. 

"Wilbur  and  I  were  very  fond  of  Upton, 
a  colored  boy  who  was  employed  by  the 
month.  But  our  love  for  Upton  did  not  de- 


His  Boyhood  29 

ter  us  from  having  some  pleasure  at  his  ex- 
pense even  if  it  cost  us  the  strain  of  grim 
silence.  The  woodpile  and  the  barn  were 
close  together.  With  Upton  at  the  wood- 
pile, that  was  our  opportunity.  In  silence 
we  gathered  our  ammunition  in  the  shape  of 
corncobs.  Think  of  two  boys  doing  that  fot 
several  hours  and  saying  not  a  word.  Stor- 
ing the  cobs  in  the  haymow,  we  waited  foi 
Upton  to  begin  his  work  at  the  woodpile,  a 
job  that  would  keep  him  employed  several 
hours  in  the  afternoon.  By  a  ruse  that  Up- 
ton did  not  suspect  we  made  our  way  to  the 
barn.  Ascending  the  haymow,  where  we 
had  our  ammunition  concealed,  we  hurled 
our  corncobs  at  Upton's  woolly  pate.  He 
could  not  see  us.  We  never  hurled  a  cob 
when  he  looked  our  way.  The  mystery  to 
Upton  was  the  source  of  the  corncobs.  They 
seemed  to'  be  tangled  up  between  his  axe 
and  woolly  head.  Upton  believed  in  ghosts. 
His  peculiar  grunt  as  he  swung  his  axe  was 
answered  by  a  like  grunt  on  our  part.  As 
he  turned  to  look,  how  the  whites  of  his  eyes 
shone  in  the  sunlight.  How  we  laughed 
with  a  noiseless  laugh — but  it  was  fun  run- 
ning over.  The  thing  became  too  serious 
for  Upton.  So  he  went  to  Aunt  Rebecca 


30       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

to  see  if  she  could  explain  the  mystery.  She 
solved  the  mystery  and  interpreted  its 
meaning  with  the  use  of  a  slipper  which  did 
not  even  expel  the  happy  memory  of  that 
afternoon  in  all  the  years  that  followed.  To 
speak  of  Upton  and  the  corncobs  was  to 
give  us  a  hearty  laugh  that  shook  our  sides 
in  years  of  sober  manhood. 

"What  happy  days  we  spent  together  at 
bat  and  ball  and  marbles.  How  we  climbed 
the  trees  and  roamed  the  fields  and  splashed 
our  feet  in  meadow  brooks.  We  loved  our 
sisters  and  enjoyed  our  games  with  them. 
But  Wilbur  and  I  delighted  in  the  strenuous 
exertions  that  belonged  to  the  daring  boy. 

"Through  all  the  years  we  loved  each 
other.  On  his  last  visit  to  the  Pacific  Coast 
Cousin  Wilbur  with  his  wife  visited  us  in 
Los  Angeles.  He  delivered  a  memorable 
sermon  in  Trinity  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  South,  of  which  I  was  pastor.  I 
had  never  had  the  pleasure  of  hearing  him 
preach  until  then.  How  he  preached!  Ev- 
ery word  he  uttered  seemed  fragrant  with 
the  breath  of  heaven.  What  a  joy  it  was 
after  the  lapse  of  years  to  be  with  him  again. 
We  lightened  the  cares  of  manhood  with 
the  memories  of  bygone  days.  Over  the 


His  Boyhood  31 

flight  of  years  stretches  the  rainbow  light  of 
heaven.  My  life  has  been  made  richer  by 
the  childhood,  youth  and  strong  manhood 
of  my  sainted  cousin,  Rev.  Wilbur  Fisk 
Meminger." 


CHAPTER  II. 
HIS   CONVERSION. 

"Sinking  and  panting  as  for  breath 

I  knew  not  help  was  near  me; 
I  cried,  'Oh,  save  me,  Lord  from  death, 

Immortal  Jesus,  hear  me; 
Then  quick  as  thought  I  felt  Him  mine, 

My  Saviour  stood  before  me; 
I  saw  His  brightness  round  me  shine, 

And  shouted  'Glory,  glory.' ',' 

WHILE  Tyrone  was  but  a  small  village 
its  first  hotel  was  built  by  John  D. 
•Stewart.  This  hotel  contained  a  bar 
and  a  billiard  room ;  but  one  evening  its 
owner  attended  a  Union  Prayer  Meeting 
held  in  a  school  house.  H|e  was  intoxicated 
and  also  carried  a  bottle  of  whiskey  in  his 
pocket.  The  earnest  appeal  by  the  leader 
brought  him  to  the  mourners'  bench;  but 
under  the  influence  of  liquor  the  workers 
did  not  think  that  he  knew  what  he  was 
doing.  He  left  the  meeting  sober,  how- 
ever, although  unsaved,  and  returning  home 
confided  to  his  wife  that  he  had  sought  sal- 
vation at  the  mourners'  bench.  At  this  Mrs. 


His  Conversion  33 

Stewart  wept  for  she  thought  he  was  mere- 
ly mocking  at  religion.  But  the  next  even- 
ing he  returned  to  the  school  house,  this 
time  perfectly  sober,  and  at  the  mourners' 
bench  was  instantly  saved.  That  evening 
he  reported  to  his  wife  that  he  had  been 
saved,  and  again  she  wept  as  she  realized 
that  she  knew  nothing  of  this  salvation,  and 
the  following  evening  she  too  attended  the 
meeting  and  was  as  definitely  saved  as  her 
husband. 

The  next  day  a  family  altar  was  set  up  in 
their  home;  the  barrels  of  liquor  were  car- 
ried to  the  sidewalk  and  emptied  into  the 
gutter;  the  billiard  tables  were  burned,  and 
the  business  closed. 

Mr.  Stewart  was  known  as  the  converted 
"Gambler  and  Hotel  Landlord."  Some 
years  later  he  became  the  stalwart  "Holi- 
ness Advocate  of  Central  Pennsylvania."  He 
was  also  a  pioneer  preacher,  an  ordained 
elder  who  traveled  and  preached  through 
the  great  forest  of  Blair,  Clearfield  and  Cen- 
tre Counties,  before  any  railroad  penetrated 
that  vast  and  wild  country.  He,  after  the 
marriage  of  Wilbur  Meminger  to  his  daugh- 
ter Laura,  became  closely  associated  with 
him  in  his  evangelistic  work. 


34       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

In  1873  Mr.  Stewart  was  assisting  the 
Rev.  James  H.  McCord,  Pastor  of  the  Old 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church  Pennsylvania 
Conference,  in  revival  services.  Mir.  Mc- 
Cord was  an  old-time  Methodist  minister. 
He  was  a  preacher,  evangelist,  revivalist  and 
an  orator.  His  rendering  of  a  hymn  gave 
more  inspiration  to  his  hearers  than  ser- 
mons by  abler  men.  Under  his  funeral  ser- 
mons it  was  well  nigh  impossible  to  keep 
silence  in  the  congregation.  H|is  revival 
sermons  struck  such  terror  to  the  hearts  of 
the  unsaved  that  it  was  hard  for  them  to  re- 
fuse an  invitation  to  seek  salvation. 

For  three  months  Rev.  Mr.  McCord 
preached  exclusively  on  the  doctrine  of 
Holiness,  Perfection  and  Sanctification. 
The  doctrine  had  been  preached  previous  to 
that  time  and  a  number  of  the  members  had 
received  such  a  work  of  grace..  This  doc- 
trine brought  antagonism  from  the  worldly 
side  of  the  church  and  rank  criticism  from 
those  who  could  not  show  clean  lives,  who 
enjoyed,  at  that  time,  official  relation  to  the 
church.  Threats  of  church  division,  splits, 
new  church,  and  all  the  arts  of  the  arch 
demon  were  employed  to  cast  reproach 
upon  the  preaching.  Personal  attacks  were 


His  Conversion  35 

heard  in  the  meetings.  Conspiracy  by  anti- 
holiness  members,  some  of  whom  were  on 
the  official  board,  were  entered  into  for  the 
purpose  of  breaking  up  the  meeting.  Strange 
to  say  all  the  meetings  were  well  attended 
and  much  interest  manifested. 

The  doctrine  of  Holiness  was  not 
preached  in  the  haphazard  way  in  which  it 
is  handed  out  to-day  by  many  of  the 
preachers;  but  by  the  Scriptures,  reason, 
history  and  experience;  expressions  and 
comments  from  the  early  founders  of 
M'ethodism,  articles  of  religion,  catechism 
and  doctrines  of  all  the  evangelical 
churches;  all  the  leading  commentators  of 
the  different  churches,  tracts,  pamphlets, 
indorsements  of  Wesley,  Watson,  Fletcher 
and  others  who  in  any  way  added  evidence 
upon  the  subject.  At  times  a  number  of 
books  with  markers  could  be  seen  around 
the  Pastor's  desk. 

Fierce  and  long  the  struggle  raged;  but 
no  one  was  saved.  It  looked  as  if  this  doc- 
trine handed  down  to  us  from  the  early 
fathers  was  not  sufficient  for  the  up-to-date 
customs  and  usages  of  the  day. 

At  this  time  special  meetings  were  in 
progress  in  the  other  churches  of  the  town, 


36       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

and  seekers  and  inquirers  began  to  present 
themselves  as  subjects  of  prayer. 

At  first  the  Presbyterian  Church  had  a 
few  inquirers;  then  the  United  Brethren, 
then  the  Baptist  and  finally  a  few  were 
found  in  the  Methodist  Episcopal  Chapel 
in  the  East  End,  which  at  this  time  was 
supported  by  the  insurgents  and  anti-holi- 
ness people  of  the  Old  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church.  The  Old  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  was  apparently  void  of  life,  although 
meetings  were  held  every  afternoon  and 
evening  with  good  attendance. 

At  the  close  of  a  meeting  one  evening, 
the  Pastor  was  informed  by  a  woman  that  if 
an  invitation  had  been  given  a  seeker  would 
have  presented  herself  for  prayer.  Hurried 
efforts  were  made  to  apprehend  the  woman, 
but  it  was  too  late. 

On  the  following  night  an  invitation  was 
offered  when  a  young  man,  Mr.  B —  came 
forward.  The  next  afternoon  two  or  three ; 
that  evening  several,  then  a  dozen,  twenty, 
thirty,  forty,  and  finally  sixty  were  forward 
crying  for  mercy  and  a  new  life.  The  con- 
versions followed  in  rapid  succession  and 
in  two  weeks  two  hundred  and  twenty-five 
persons  were  brought  to  know  Jesus  as  a 


His  Conversion  37 

Saviour.  Among  this  number  was  Wilbur 
Meminger,  a  young  man  in  the  bloom  of 
youth,  with  all  the  vigor  of  soul,  body  and 
spirit,  with  a  sanguine  temperament,  and  a 
capacity  possessed  by  few  to  enjoy  the 
pleasures  of  the  world. 

Not  only  did  he  possess  these,  but  he  had 
a  bright  mind  which,  harnessed  with  a  ro- 
bust body,  gave  him  a  capacity  for  learning. 
Already  had  his  mind  begun  to  reach  out 
along  the  line  of  reason  and  research,  and 
on  account  of  his  environments,  infidel  lit- 
erature had  found  its  way  into  his  hands. 
His  companions  were  skeptical  in  reference 
to  the  Bible  and  religion  and  among  strang- 
ers he  soon  became  like  them.  His  own 
words  will  best  express  his  condition  at  this 
time:  "When  I  was  lost  in  sin  and  sinful 
pleasure  and  fast  drifting  upon  the  rocks  of 
infidelity  I  found  Jesus  who  saved  me  from 
ruin." 

Interesting  is  it  to  note  that  on  this  very 
night  of  conversion  his  saintly  father,  sev- 
eral hundred  miles  away,  had  completed  his 
Saturday  work,  including  the  preparation  of 
his  sermon  for  the  morrow;  but  before  re- 
tiring dropped  to  his  knees  and  prayed  ear- 


38       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

nestly  for  just  one  thing,  the  conversion  of 
his  son  Wilbur. 

And  the  Holy  Spirit  at  the  same  hour 
flashed  the  picture  of  the  praying  father  be- 
fore the  mind  of  the  son  and  impelled  him 
to  seek  his  father's  God. 

The  conversion  of  this  young  man  was 
the  foundation  of  the  character  which 
showed  all  through  his  life  and  on  which 
securely  rested  the  building  and  super- 
structure of  later  years. 

Only  a  few  days  elapsed  until  Mr.  M'emin- 
ger  was  asked  to  lead  the  Young  People's 
Meeting  then  held  in  the  basement  of  the 
church.  "I  can  see,"  says  one,  "that  room 
now,  with  its  old  straight  back  red  benches, 
full  of  scratches,  with  its  old  whitewashed 
heaters,  with  its  little  squat  windows  and 
low  ceilings,  and  its  square  wooden  sup- 
ports and  its  'Amen  Corner.'  There  is  quite 
a  contrast  when  we  look  at  the  more  modern 
church  with  its  stained  glass  windows,  its 
velvet  carpets,  its  grand  pipe  organ  and  all 
modern  conveniences.  The  one  was  con- 
spicuous for  its  'Glories/  'Hallelujahs,' 
and  'Amens' ;  the  latter  for  its  silence. 

"This  Sabbath  evening  I  see  this  young 
man  taking  his  first  step  in  public  Chris- 


His  Conversion  39 

tian  work.  As  he  arose  with  the  Bible  in 
his  hand,  his  voice  trembling,  he  said,  'I 
perceive  that  God  is  no  respecter  of  per- 
sons.' This  was  his  first  message.  His  last 
words  in  New  York,  were,  'Amen,  my  heart 
is  breaking  for  souls.' 

Referring  again  to  his  first  service,  he  read 
a  few  passages  of  Scripture.  A  few  re- 
marks, a  short  story  of  his  conversion,  was 
the  substance  of  his  talk  at  this  time.  He 
joined  the  church  on  probation,  was  assigned 
to  a  class  and  at  the  end  of  the  probation 
was  received  into  full  membership. 

At  the  revival  meetings  a  lot  of  young 
men  and  friends  of  Mr.  Meminger  were  con- 
verted, who  helped  each  other,  by  their  sym- 
pathy, their  encouragement  and  association 
in  and  out  of  the  church. 


CHAPTER  III. 
'  HIS  BUSINESS  CAREER. 

IN  his  boyhood  a  great  desire  to  be  useful 
seemed    to    take    possession    of    Wilbur 
Meminger,  and  he  began  to  weigh  the 
different  callings  in  life  in  order  to  decide 
which  one  would  give  the  greatest  field  of 
usefulness.      He   was   willing   to    choose   a 
life  work  that  was  full  of  close  application, 
great  discipline  and  strenuous  work,  if  it 
might  bring  to  him  a  position  of  merit  and 
honor  in  later  years. 

He  sought  and  tried  to  get  a  scholarship 
in  the  Naval  Academy,  and  was  successful 
in  so  far  as  to  be  promised  this  rare  privi- 
lege and  had  the  approval  of  the  President 
of  the  United  States.  This  appointment, 
however,  was  not  forthcoming  on  account  of 
some  political  changes  that  took  place  at 
that  particular  time.  If  this  position  had 
been  obtained,  Mr.  Meminger  might  to-day 
have  been  among  the  foremost  naval  offi- 
cers of  the  day,  bedecked  with  honors,  both 
of  peace  and  war,  of  the  greatest  nation  on 
the  globe.  Instead  he  has  fallen  a  soldier  in 


WILBUR    MEMINGER, 
AGE    45    YEARS. 


His  Business  Career  41 

the  Army  of  Christ,  with  the  great  honor  of 
being  carried  from  the  battlefield  in  a  dying 
condition.  Soldiers  who  die  on  the  field  of 
battle  can  be  identified  by  the  marks  upon 
them,  to  what  Corps,  Division,  Brigade, 
Regiment  or  Company  they  belong,  and  by 
their  straps,  if  officers,  what  rank  they  hold. 
It  might  be  some  satisfaction  to  us  if  we 
could  know  the  rank  he  held;  but  we  will  be 
content  to  know,  "For  now  we  see  through 
a  glass  darkly ;  but  then  face  to  face ;  now  we 
know  in  part;  but  then  shall  we  know  even 
as  also  we  are  known."  We  cannot  tell  his 
rank,  but  like  many  an  officer  in  our  Civil 
strife,  he  kept  as  much  as  possible  in  the 
background. 

The  disappointment  of  not  receiving  the 
scholarship  in  the  Naval  Academy,  was  felt 
keenly  by  this  young  man;  but  it  was  the 
Lord's  way  of  banking  up  the  little  life 
stream  that  made  it  change  its  course  from 
a  life  of  outward  conflict  to  one  of  inward 
conflict,  from  a  service  of  self  to  a  service 
for  Christ  and  others. 

Mr.  Meminger  commenced  his  business 
career  when  a  very  young  man  as  a  clerk  in 
the  General  Mercantile  store  of  A.  B.  Hoo- 
ver, then  the  leading  merchant  in  his  town 


42       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

of  Tyrone,  Pa.  After  serving  there  for  some 
time,  he  decided  to  learn  the  clothing  busi- 
ness and  hired  as  a  clerk  under  C.  J.  Kegel, 
then  the  foremost  business  man  in  that  line 
in  Tyrone,  and  continued  there  until  1879, 
when  he  opened  a  store  under  the  firm  name 
of  Meminger  &  Stewart. 

It  was  during  his  stay  with  C.  J.  Kegel 
that  he  met  and  became  acquainted  with 
Laura,  the  daughter  of  Rev.  J.  D.  Stewart, 
who  a  number  of  years  afterward  became 
his  wife.  On  July  8,  1880,  this  firm  which 
had  just  begun  to  do  business,  was  driven 
out  by  a  very  disastrous  fire  that  burned 
out  all  the  principal  business  section  in 
town.  By  prompt  action  and  helpful  friends 
they  managed  to  escape  with  a  nominal  loss. 
They  managed  to  get  temporary  quarters 
until  the  building  was  remodeled  and  made 
the  most  beautiful  quarter  in  town.  After  a 
year  or  two  the  firm  changed  to  W.  F.  Mem- 
inger, and  the  business  continued  to  grow 
and  prosper  until  it  became  the  leading 
clothing  store  of  the  town.  Mir.  Meminger 
continued  in  business  at  this  stand  until 
January,  1897,  when  the  building  and  con- 
tents were  again  ruined  by  fire  and  water. 

After  this  fire  Mr.  Meminger  closed  his 


His  Business  Career  43 

business  and  soon  was  summoned  to  take 
charge  of  the  work  of  the  Christian  and 
Missionary  Alliance  in  Chicago,  Illinois. 

During  his  business  career  he  had  one  fac- 
tor in  his  life,  that  gave  much  force  and 
success  in  his  business  as  well  as  in  his 
evangelistic  work.  It  was  PROMPTNESS.  He 
was  always  on  time.  At  the  store,  in  the 
home,  at  the  church,  everywhere  he  was  on 
time.  When  he  made  a  promise  or  a  con- 
tract he  was  there  to  meet  it.  If  he  gave  a 
note,  he  was  there  when  the  note  became 
due,  either  to  renew  or  cancel  his  paper. 

The  Bible  was  always  on  the  left  side 
corner  of  his  writing  desk.  It  was  his  guide. 
It  was  the  light  of  his  life.  In  it  were  the 
issues  of  life.  It  exposed  error  and  con- 
tained all  seasonable  truth.  It  gave  dignity 
to  the  meanest  duty,  and  it  told  him  of  for- 
giveness for  the  greatest  sin.  How  much 
indeed  was  this  man  indebted  to  this  Book ! 


CHAPTER  IV. 
A  CLASS  LEADER. 

IT  was  not  long  after  his  conversion  be- 
fore he  showed  a  devotion  to  the  church 
and  a  desire  to  be  useful  along  the  line 
of  Christian  work. 

He  was  first  appointed  Sunday  school 
teacher,  then  steward,  class  leader,  trustee, 
exhorter,  local  preacher,  and  finally  Sunday 
school  superintendent.  He  soon  became 
popular  among  the  rank  and  file  of  the 
church  and  was  nominated  and  elected  Sun- 
day school  superintendent  in  opposition  to 
some  old  live  workers.  This  caused  con- 
sternation and  dissatisfaction  in  the  ranks  of 
the  old  live  officers,  finally  causing  the 
preacher  in  charge  to  disband  the  Sunday 
school  and  take  the  reins  in  his  own  hands. 
This  put  a  damper  on  the  progress  of  Mr. 
Meminger  in  official  duty  in  the  Sunday 
school,  yet  he  still  continued  to  teach  his 
class  and  was  content  in  any  position  he  oc- 
cupied. 

Year  after  year  as  his  friends  urged  him  to 
take  the  office  of  Superintendent  he  always 


A  Class  Leader  45 

declined;  but  finally  he  was  nominated, 
elected  and  served  five  years  or  more.  He 
now  had  plenty  to  perplex  him,  much  to  try 
his  patience  and  enough  to  perfect  him  in 
love.  He  was  successful  in  this  position  and 
had  the  support  and  co-operation  of  the  offi- 
ciary of  the  branch. 

The  Sunday  school  was  kept  on  the  spirit- 
ual line  and  all  the  instruction  that  could 
be  used  for  the  repentance  and  conversion 
of  the  scholars  was  put  forth. 

He  was  also  leader  of  one  of  the  classes 
in  the  church,  known  far  and  near  as  the 
"Tuesday  Night  Class."  Wilbur's  brother 
thus  recalls  the  beginning  of  his  leadership 
of  the  Tuesday  Night  Class : 

"The  Rev.  Finley  Riddle  was  the  pastor 
in  charge  of  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  at  Tyrone,  Pa.,  of  which  Wilbur 
was  an  active  member.  The  Tuesday  night 
class  was  one  that  seldom  met,  and  in  order 
to  remedy  this  state  of  affairs  the  Rev.  M'r. 
Riddle  called  at  the  store  one  Monday  morn- 
ing and  informed  Wilbur  that  he  had  ap- 
pointed him  to  lead  that  class.  Wilbur  was 
astonished,  and  offered  many  reasons  why 
he  could  not  accept  it.  But  the  pastor  used 
every  objection  Wilbur  made  as  the  very 


46       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

reason  why  he  should  take  the  class.  Final- 
ly Wilbur  said,  'Why,  Brother  Riddle,  if  I 
lead  that  class  no  one  at  all  will  come.'  'So 
much  the  better  for  you,'  said  the  minis- 
ter, 'you  will  not  have  to  stay  long  and  can 
come  back  to  your  store.'  As  he  said  this 
he  laid  a  new  class  book  on  the  desk  and 
told  Wilbur  that  he  had  transferred  all  the 
names  from  the  old  one  and  that  this  book 
was  twenty-five  cents.  'And  you,'  he  said, 
looking  at  me,  'wrap  up  a  box  of  collars  for 
me.  I  will  try  and  see  you  Wednesday. 
Good-day/  I  handed  him  his  package  as 
he  passed  out  of  the  store  and  noticed  the 
broad  smile  on  his  smooth  face  as  he  re- 
peated his  favorite  expression  of  'Good-day.' 
"Tuesday  at  7.30  P.M.  Wilbur  said  to  me, 
'I  arn  going  up  to  the  church — I  may  not  be 
gone  long.'  He  did  not  return  to  the  store 
again  that  night  and  I  presumed  someone 
had  been  at  the  Tuesday  night  class.  On 
the  following  Wednesday  morning  one  of 
the  first  to  call  at  the  store  was  Rev.  MY. 
Riddle,  and  he  waited  until  Wilbur  arrived, 
when  he  said,  'How  did  you  get  along  last 
night?'  Wilbur  said,  'Very  well,  there  was 
one  present.'  'Good,'  said  the  Reverend, 
'you  said  no  one  at  all  would  attend  it. 


A  Class  Leader  47 

Good-day.'  The  next  Tuesday  night  there 
were  two  present,  and  on  the  following 
Wednesday  morning  the  Reverend  was 
among  the  first  to  call  at  the  store.  As  soon 
as  Wilbur  came  in  he  asked,  'Well,  how  did 
you  get  along  last  night?'  Wilbur  report- 
ed as  above.  'Two,'  exclaimed  the  Rever- 
end, 'and  you  said  you  could  not  lead  that 
class.  Why,  my  dear  brother,  there  is  an 
increase  in  the  attendance  on  the  second 
night  under  your  leadership  of  a  hundred 
per  cent. — you  are  the  very  man  for  the 
class.  I  knew  that  or  I  would  not  have  ap- 
pointed you  to  lead  it.  Good-day.'  The  at- 
tendance increased  until  it  filled  the  class 
room  and  they  moved  into  the  one  used  by 
the  Infant  Department  of  the  Sunday  school. 
Many  came  from  quite  a  distance  to  have 
the  truth,  for  it  became  known  abroad  that 
Wilbur  made  the  way  plain  that  without 
holiness  no  man  shall  see  the  Lord." 

Mr.  Mleminger,  realizing  the  responsibil- 
ity as  a  class  leader,  felt  it  his  duty  to  enlist 
as  many  as  possible  to  attend  regularly.  He 
used  all  his  energies  from  time  to  time,  vis- 
iting and  entreating;  but  with  all  the  work 
to  build  up  the  class  it  seemed  to  decrease 
in  numbers  and  interest.  This  looked  very 


48       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

discouraging  to  him  and  was  a  hard  blow 
on  the  earnest  efforts  of  a  young  man  so  full 
of  zeal  for  Christ  and  the  church.  It  was 
only  the  entering  of  the  wedge,  by  which 
the  life  of  faith  might  exemplify  itself  in  his 
life  and  his  work  in  after  years. 

In  all  church  or  Christian  work  in  any 
place,  it  will  be  found  that  there  are  at  least 
two  or  three  who  have  their  heart  in  the 
work  and  are  ready  to  go  forward  against  all 
odds,  all  discouragements,  and  failure,  on, 
on,  to  success.  The  Tuesday  night  class 
was  not  without  one  in  the  person  of  Mrs. 
C — ,  a  faithful  and  devoted  Christian  wom- 
an, a  kind  mother,  one  who  was  always 
faithful  in  attendance  at  church  and  ready 
to  help  others.  At  the  close  of  a  meeting  one 
Tuesday  night,  it  seemed  more  than  ever 
this  meeting  was  a  failure.  Mr.  Meminger 
had  made  up  his  mind  that  the  class  must 
succeed  or  the  book  would  be  handed  to 
the  pastor.  Hie  talked  with  Mrs.  C —  about 
it  and  both  seemed  to  think  it  ought  not 
only  to  be  continued,  but  that  much  good 
should  be  derived  from  the  mutual  fellow- 
ship which  only  can  be  had  in  this  peculiar 
means  of  grace.  It  was  decided  that  prayer, 
then  and  there  should  answer  the  question 


A  Class  Leader  49 

alone.  There  in  that  little  room,  those  two 
openly  prayed,  and  earnestly  petitioned  God 
to  show  them  His  will  in  reference  to  this 
meeting  and  in  a  short  time  they  arose  with 
the  assurance  that  He  would  now  bless  their 
efforts  with  much  success.  Here  we  may 
truthfully  say  was  the  birthplace  of  the 
Holiness  Class  of  the  First  Methodist  Epis- 
copal Church  of  Tyrone,  Pa. 

The  class  now  grew  in  numbers  and  pow- 
er; some  came  through  curiosity,  others  as 
honest  seekers  after  righteousness.  It  was 
not  many  years  until  it  reached  seventy 
members  in  all,  regular  and  transient.  Soon 
a  large  number  had  entered  into  the  experi- 
ence of  perfect  love,  became  stalwart  Chris- 
tians and  their  testimony  was  heard  in  all 
the  experience  meetings  of  the  church.  I 
may  say  here  that  the  class  soon  became 
the  place  for  all  who  were  pressing  on  to 
higher  ground.  It  was  the  backbone  of  the 
spiritual  element  of  the  church.  This  was 
not  a  winter  class,  that  lasted  only  while 
special  effort  was  made  for  converts;  but 
had  as  much  interest  in  July  as  in  December. 

During  this  time  Mr.  Meminger  was  en- 
gaged in  the  clothing  and  gents'  furnishing 
business  in  the  same  town ;  but  this  did  not 


50       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

interfere  at  all  with  his  duty  to  his  church 
or  class,  for  at  7.30  Tuesday  evening  Mr. 
Meminger  could  be  seen  going  toward  the 
church  with  a  small  box  under  his  arm,  bow- 
ing to  this  friend  and  to  that  business  man, 
gathering  several  members  on  the  way  to 
the  class,  where  other  members  were  in 
waiting  for  their  leader. 

Among  the  members  there  were  at  least 
half  a  dozen  good  male  singers  who  were 
capable  of  leading  revival  singing;  and  this 
was  another  asset  to  the  class.  The  order 
of  the  class  was  silent  prayer  by  the  leader, 
placing  of  the  little  box  on  the  table,  and 
then  the  singing  began  to  roll  as  if  an  pld 
time  revival  had  been  in  progress  for  a 
month.  After  a  few  inspiring  hymns  had 
been  sung,  and  a  prayer  or  two,  one  by  the 
leader,  a  Scripture  lesson  would  be  read, 
and  then  Mr.  M'eminger  would  commence 
the  lesson,  give  some  needed  exhortation 
and  encouragement,  and  then  call  for  testi- 
monies. 

At  the  close  of  class  Mr.  Meminger  would 
move  a  small  table  out  in  the  centre  of  the 
floor,  which  he  called  "The  Ark,"  and  ask 
all  to  gather  around  it,  and  ask  the  Lord  for 
what  they  wanted.  Those  seeking  for  any- 


A  Class  Leader  51 

thing  were  gently  asked  to  pray  aloud,  oth- 
ers joined  in  short  prayers,  and  finally  the 
leader  would  lead  to  the  throne  of  grace, 
with  such  humility,  confidence  and  bold- 
ness, that  all  seemed  to  take  hold  of  the 
very  horns  of  the  altar. 

It  was  a  rule  among  the  members  of  this 
class  as  they  met  on  the  street,  in  the  store, 
in  church,  or  in  the  homes,  that  their  con- 
versation should  be  upon  heaven  and  heav- 
enly things. 

Another  feature  of  the  class  was  that 
every  member  was  there  on  Tuesday  and 
every  Tuesday  unless  he  was  kept  away  by 
some  unavoidable  cause.  All  things  were 
laid  aside  on  that  night  and  no  engagements 
were  made  for  that  evening. 

Each  member  either  in  song,  prayer,  or 
testimony  gave  it  in  his  own  natural  way. 
Each  had  his  own  personality  and  expres- 
sion which  gave  this  gathering  a  marked 
contrast  with  the  meetings  where  all  seemed 
to  be  imitation  instead  of  individuality. 

"I  remember  one  cold  night,"  writes  one 
member  of  this  class,  "as  we  gathered  in 
the  church ;  the  class  room  was  cold  and  in 
no  condition  to  remain  in.  One  member  sug- 
gested an  oil  stove  which  he  had,  and  his 


52       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

son  was  despatched  some  four  or  five 
squares  away  to  get  the  heater;  in  the 
meantime  the  class  kept  warm  by  some 
lively  singing.  Soon  the  stove  arrived  and 
I  need  not  say  a  glorious  meeting  followed." 
Mr.  Meminger  interested  this  class  in  mis- 
sions, of  which  we  shall  hear  later.  He  re- 
mained class  leader  until  called  to  Chicago. 
Many  have  passed  away,  all  of  whom  died 
in  the  triumphs  of  a  living  faith ;  others  have 
gone  into  Christian  work,  others  are  stand- 
ing for  the  full  salvation  in  their  own  home 
town  and  other  cities,  some  in  China,  some 
in  Africa,  others  in  South  America,  and 
some  few  have  given  up  the  faith. 

One  of  his  class  members,  W.  E.  McKin- 
ney,  writes  thus  of  his  beloved  leader  and 
friend : 

"One  of  the  best  and  most  able  Christian 
workers  that  I  have  had  the  pleasure  of 
knowing  was  Brother  W.  F.  Meminger. 
My  first  recollection  of  him  was  at  the  great 
revival  of  Rev.  Mr.  McCord  in  the  Old  First 
Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  on  Railroad 
St.,  Tyrone. 

He  was  always  at  his  post  of  duty,  at  the 
Sunday  school,  preaching  service,  prayer 
meeting  and  class  meeting.  I  had  the  pleas- 


FIRST    METHODIST    EPISCOPAL    CHURCH,   TYRONE. 


A  Class  Leader  53 

ure  of  working  for  him  when  he  was  Super- 
intendent of  the  Sunday  school,  as  one  of  his 
teachers.  So  I  watched  him  day  after  day 
and  year  after  year,  but  he  was  just  the 
same  as  when  I  first  knew  him,  only  more 
zealous  for  the  Lord's  cause. 

"In  the  revival  under  Rev.  Geo.  Penepack- 
er,  after  being  at  the  altar  thirteen  nights,  I 
was  converted  January  19,  1889.  My  friend 
and  brother,  who  always  was  so  much  inter- 
ested in  me,  was  right  in  front  of  me,  talk- 
ing and  praying  with  me.  When  the  dear 
Lord  Jesus  came  into  my  heart,  I  said, 
'Praise  the  Lord !'  and  the  first  person  I  saw 
was  Brother  Meminger,  and  how  his  face 
did  shine,  and  I  know  he  received  some  of 
the  blessing  which  came  to  me. 

"After  that  my  wife  and  I  joined  Brother 
Meminger's  Tuesday  night  class  meeting, 
and  what  grand  and  glorious  times  we  did 
have  in  that  old  class  meeting!  We  love  to 
talk  about  it  yet,  and  expect  to  meet  some 
day. 

"While  I  was  a  member  of  his  class  I 
made  him  a  little  box  to  gather  money  for 
the  Bishop  William  Taylor  fund  in  Africa. 
So  every  Tuesday  night  the  little  box  was 
brought  by  the  leader  and  placed  on  the 


54       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

table,  and  any  one  was  at  liberty  to  con- 
tribute. It  was  opened  every  month  and 
counted  and  the  amount  reported  to  the 
class.  Then  the  brother  would  send  it  off  to 
far-away  Africa  to  help  some  one  to  find 
God.  So  the  good  brother  was  working  in 
more  ways  than  one.  I  have  had  many  a 
heart  to  heart  talk  with  him,  when  he  was 
in  the  clothing  business  in  Tyrone,  Pa.,  and 
it  has  followed  me  all  through  my  life.  I 
felt  when  he  was  living  that  I  always  had  a 
brother  who  was  praying  for  me.  Hie  has 
been  one  of  my  best  friends  and  when  I 
needed  advice  or  sympathy  I  knew  where  to 
go.  The  last  time  I  had  the  pleasure  of 
meeting  and  talking  with  him  was  at  a  con- 
vention on  Wylie  Ave.,  Pittsburg,  Pa.  I  feel 
that  he  will  always  live  in  the  hearts  of  a 
great  many  people  for  the  great  good  that 
he  did  for  them.  Brother  Meminger's  influ- 
ence will  live  as  long  as  I  live,  for  I  still 
hold  fast  to  the  same  Jesus  that  he  preached 
and  served  so  faithfully." 


CHAPTER  V. 

EVANGELISTIC    WORK    IN    THE 
METHODIST  CHURCH. 

WILBUR  MEMINGER  soon  after  his 
conversion  felt  he  was  called  to 
preach  the  Gospel.  He  knew  from 
the  outside  what  it  was.  to  be  a  Methodist 
preacher,  for  he  had  from  a  babe  been  moved 
from  place  to  place,  and  from  town  to  town. 
He  was  the  son  of  an  itinerant  preacher,  and 
in  those  early  days  the  hardships  were  great 
enough  to  satisfy  the  best  of  men. 

He  was  granted  an  exhorter's  license  and 
afterward  was  made  local  preacher  by  the 
quarterly  conference.  H|is  father,  Rev.  W. 
M1.  Meminger,  was  at  this  time  in  active 
service,  and  Wilbur  Mteminger  was  not  at  a 
loss  for  revival  work  in  helping  his  father 
on  the  circuits  from  time  to  time. 

He  was  assigned  the  regular  course  of 
study  of  the  local  preachers  and  had  always 
been  successful  for  years  in  all  his  examina- 
tions, until  by  sickness  and  overwork  in  bus- 
iness and  preaching  he  was  compelled  to 
lay  aside  some  few  branches  and  was  on 


56       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

this  account  (maybe)  not  passed  in  the  ex- 
amination. 

This  was  the  hardest  blow  yet  given  to 
the  stalwart  little  man,  as  he  did  not  look 
at  it  as  a  failure  of  study  so  much  as  it  was 
an  overabundance  of  Holiness  and  Sanctifi- 
cation,  then  so  much  disliked  by  those  who 
would  not  embrace  it. 

Let  us  look  at  one  member  of  the  com- 
mittee who  would  not  let  him  continue  as  a 
local  preacher.  A  full-fledged  Methodist 
Episcopal  minister,  insane  on  horses,  who 
would  drive  at  a  three-minute  pace  through 
the  town  in  which  he  lived,  shoot  down  a 
dog  if  it  would  bark  at  his  wagon  wheels. 
He  received  a  commission  in  the  U.  S.  Army 
as  chaplain,  served  a  short  time,  was  court 
martialed  for  drunkenness  and  driven  from 
its  ranks. 

This  was  a  damper  upon  the  work  of 
Wilbur  Meminger,  who  continued  to  help 
his  father  and  assisted  other  ministers  in 
their  work,  holding  meetings  in  out  of  town 
churches,  halls,  school  rooms  and  in  every 
place  to  which  he  was  invited. 

He  was  not  an  evangelist  that  had  to  be 
paid  an  enormous  sum  for  a  few  nights' 
service;  but  would  take  any  offering  that 


In  the  Methodist  Church  57 

was  given  to  him  for  his  service.  This  soon 
brought  him  in  favor  with  the  men  who 
were  getting  modest  salaries  and  the  calls 
soon  began  to  come  faster  than  he  could 
fill  them. 

In  the  meantime  trusting  his  business  to 
others,  he  devoted  what  time  he  could  be- 
tween engagements,  and  with  his  whole  be- 
ing thrown  into,  the  work,  he  soon  began  to 
have  large  revivals.  In  Bedford,  Catawis- 
sa,  Bellwood,  Lion,  Milesburg,  Port  M'atil- 
da,  York,  Bald  Eagle,  Birmingham,  Irons- 
ville,  and  other  places  scores  and  hundreds 
were  converted  to  Jesus. 

One  place  deserves  special  mention.  Some 
few  members  of  the  town  of  Ironsville 
(which  derived  its  name  from  the  forges  and 
rolling  mills  located  at  that  place),  wished 
to  have  some  preaching  in  the  school  house 
of  the  village.  Several  night  meetings  were 
held  in  the  place  without  any  success. 

At  the  close  of  the  meeting  one  night, 
Mr.  Meminger  requested  any  person  who 
was  interested  in  a  revival  to  remain.  Nine 
persons  remained  for  consecration  and 
prayer.  It  was  there  at  that  time  they  be- 
lieved a  great  work  would  follow. 

This    village  was    a  very  wicked    place. 


58       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

Gambling,  drinking,  Sabbath  desecration, 
and  all  the  vices  were  fully  practiced  here. 
Soon  the  work  commenced  and  soon  seek- 
ers were  at  the  altar,  the  number  increas- 
ing until  nearly  the  whole  village  was  con- 
verted and  transformed  into  a  great  relig- 
ious neighborhood.  During  the  progress  of 
this  meeting  one  could  see  great,  strong 
men  break  down  into  weeping,  and  go  to 
the  altar,  crying,  "God  be  merciful  to  me  a 
sinner." 

The  meeting  continued  for  weeks,  and  an 
organization  was  effected  and  soon  a  church 
in  full  working  order  was  established. 

Next  an  auditorium  was  needed,  but 
where  was  the  money  to  build  it? 

A  site  was  selected  and  the  ground  brok- 
en, and  soon  labor  was  donated  by  the  large, 
stalwart  men  of  the  forge,  rolling  mill  and 
other  occupations,  and  the  picks,  shovels 
and  digging  irons  were  soon  throwing  out 
the  earth  and  stone  for  the  foundations. 
Subscriptions  and  money  began  to  come 
and  in  a  few  months  the  edifice  was  dedi- 
cated. This  church  was  built  on  solid  rock 
and  still  stands  as  a  monument  of  faith  and 
works  of  a  few  who  were  not  afraid  to  ask 


In  the  Methodist  Church  59 

God  for  something  and  were  not  surprised 
when  it  came. 

During  the  revival  season  in  his  own 
church  Mr.  Meminger  was  always  there  if 
in  town.  Sometimes  he  was  called  upon  to 
fill  the  pulpit,  at  other  times  to  exhort,  lead 
prayer  meetings,  etc.  His  great  success 
seemed  to  be  in  his  work  around  the  altar, 
leading  the  forces  in  prayer  from  seeming 
defeat  on  to  glorious  victory.  "Often,"  says 
one,  "I  have  seen  him  start  at  one  end  of 
the  altar  and  finish  at  the  other,  after  hav- 
ing helped  all  to  take  hold  by  faith  and  re- 
ceive salvation,  while  the  singing  would  rise 
higher  and  re-echo  from  heaven  to  earth. 
As  he  would  pass  along  from  one  to  an- 
other and  they  received  Jesus  into  their 
lives,  he  would  shout:  'Sing  the  Doxology 
again  !  Salvation,  oh,  the  joyful  sound !' ' 

The  Y.  M;.  C.  A.  was  organized  in  Tyrone 
and  he  became  an  active  member  in  its  ranks 
and  did  valiant  service  under  two  evangel- 
ists, who  conducted  successful  revivals.  He 
was  also  interested  in  the  work,  until  he 
took  up  active  work  out  of  town.  He  also 
gave  great  support  to  the  Salvation  Army, 
which  conducted  a  successful  campaign  in 


60       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

Tyrone  for  several  years.  He  was  a  fre- 
quent visitor  in  the  cities  and  always  found 
his  way  to  the  missions  and  army  meet- 
ings near  by  and  did  all  he  could  to  help 
men  to  a  new  life. 


CHAPTER  VI. 

THE    BAPTISM    OF    THE    HOLY 
SPIRIT. 

"Burn  on,  O  fire  of  God,  burn  on; 

Till  all  my  soul  Christ's  image  bears, 
And  ev'ry  power  and  pulse  within, 

His  holy,  heaven'ly  nature  wears. 

"Burn  on,  burn  on !  O  fire  of  God  burn  on, 

Till  all  my  dross  is  burned  away, 
Burn  on,  burn  on !  prepare  me  for  the  testing  day." 

IN  his  early  Christian  life  Wilbur  Memin- 
ger  had  a  desire  for  a  higher  Christian 
experience,  or  to  use  his  own  words  in 
later  years,   "the  highest  Christian  experi- 
ence." 

As  he  was  converted  under  the  preaching 
of  a  "Holiness  man,"  it  was  his  good  for- 
tune to  be  under  the  instruction  of  a  man 
who  not  only  professed  the  grand  doctrine 
taught  by  Wesley,  of  Perfection,  Holiness 
and  the  Second  Blessing;  but  understood  it 
from  an  intellectual  as  well  as  a  spiritual 
standpoint. 
This  person  was  Rev.  John  D.  Stewart, 


62       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

who  for  a  number  of  years  had  kept  this 
teaching  before  his  people,  as  the  grand 
privilege  of  the  Christian.  Mr.  Meminger 
soon  became  interested  in  this  subject.  He 
noticed  how  happy  were  the  lives  of  this 
particular  group  of  people.  He  also  no- 
ticed another  element  among  the  professed 
followers  of  the  same  Christ,  who  were  in 
direct  opposition  to  this  doctrine  and  whose 
opposition  was  directed  against  those  who 
either  professed,  or  sought  or  who  were 
even  in  sympathy  with  them. 

This  was  a  great  wonder  to  him  and  no 
doubt  held  him  from  entering  into  this  state 
of  the  Christian  soon  after  his  conversion. 
He  thought,  how  can  a  man  or  woman  who 
has  received  the  light  and  life  of  Christ,  not 
want  any  more  of  Him?  He  was  hungering 
and  thirsting  after  righteousness,  while  oth- 
ers were  saying  there  was  no  more  to  get. 
He  came  to  this  conclusion :  "If  the  men 
who  have  been  instrumental  in  my  salva- 
tion, say  they  possess  the  Holy  Spirit  and 
have  shown  clean  lives,  while  the  ones  who 
oppose  the  doctrine  have  shady  lives,  I  think 
there  must  be  something  in  it  that  con- 
demns the  very  existence  of  evil  in  the 
heart."  He  decided  to  make  a  thorough 


The  Holy  Spirit  63 

search  of  the  whole  affair,  by  inquiry,  read- 
ing, prayer  and  in  all  other  ways  he  could 
find. 

Being  a  son  of  an  old  Methodist  Episco- 
pal preacher  it  gave  him  prestige  and  ac- 
quaintance with  many  ministers  whom  he 
knew,  and  he  was  free  to  converse  about 
the  much  abused  and  misunderstood  doc- 
trine. Many  answers  were  given  him ;  some 
encouraging  and  some  discouraging  and 
some  from  prejudiced  minds,  so  that  the  last 
inquiry  became  more  perplexing  than  the 
former.  Thus  his  comforters  had  confused 
him  more  than  encouraged  him.  Perhaps  it 
was  just  what  the  Lord  wanted,  that  he 
might  accept  it  as  a  gift  by  faith  rather  than 
work  it  out  by  men's  opinions. 

Still  the  testimony  rolled  on  from  those 
he  could  not  doubt.  He  made  it  a  special 
study  from  his  Bible  in  his  store,  during 
the  intervals  of  business  activity.  He  made 
a  number  of  journeys  to  camp  meetings 
where  he  might  hear  something  about  him- 
self and  the  void  that  had  not  been  filled. 

At  this  time  he  saw  also  the  unpopularity 
of  those  who  professed  the  doctrine;  not 
because  they  were  poor,  not  because  they 


64       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

were  not  good  Methodists ;  not  because  they 
were  not  good  citizens,  but  because  they 
were  willing  to  surrender  all  for  Christ  and 
lead  clean  lives. 

As  there  come  decisions  in  every  life  in 
reference  to  questions  that  arise  from  time 
to  time,  and  must  be  solved  one  way  or  the 
other,  so  now  came  the  time  when  this  ques- 
tion must  be  settled  for  him.  Hie  first  decid- 
ed to  go  to  a  good  camp  meeting,  where 
great  preachers,  who  were  well-versed  in 
this  doctrine,  might  be  heard. 

He  thought,  "Oh,  if  I  could  only  hear  that 
great  man,  John  S.  Inskip,  preach  on  it,  'the 
very  God  of  Peace  sanctify  you  wholly,'  I 
believe  I  would  get  it;  and  if  not,  then  John 
A.  Wood,  D.D.,  surely  would  help  me  out 
of  the  brush,  if  he  would  preach  on  'Per- 
fect Love';  and  none  can  preach  it  better 
than  he.  And  if  these  could  not  get  me  the 
blessing,  I  am  sure  Amanda  Smith  would 
pray  me  through." 

He  started  for  Pitman  Grove,  secured 
quarters,  and  attended  the  afternoon  meet- 
ings. To  his  surprise  John  S.  Inskip 
preached  on  "The  very  God  of  Peace,"  etc. 
"Now,"  he  thought,  "all  will  be  well."  And 
the  next  great  preacher  was  John  A.  Wood 


The  Holy  Spirit  65 

on  "Perfect  Love."  But  nothing  happened. 
And  then  came  the  consecration  meeting  in 
the  straw.  There  were  scores  of  people  who 
kneeled  for  salvation  and  sanctification, 
where  the  great  woman  of  prayer,  Amanda 
Smith,  prayed,  and  many  received  what 
they  were  seeking  for.  But  Wilbur  Memin- 
ger  did  not  and  he  afterwards  said  all  he 
received  "was  straw."  He  went  home  with- 
out it.  He  read,  he  talked,  he  argued,  he 
did  everything  he  knew  and  finally  decided 
all  was  vain. 

On  a  Saturday  night,  late  after  the  ardu- 
ous toils  of  a  week  in  a  clothing  store,  he 
made  his  way  to  his  home,  where  he  pre- 
pared himself  for  the  Sabbath,  by  bathing 
and  clothing  himself,  the  family  having  re- 
tired for  the  night.  He  decided  at  this 
time  to  settle  this  question  and  get  more  in 
love  with  Jesus.  He  intended  spending  the 
night  in  prayer  and  reading  and  then  eat  his 
breakfast  and  go  to  church. 

He  kneeled  with  his  Bible  before  him  and 
then  prayed  for  a  pure  heart.  About  five  or 
ten  minutes  were  spent  in  earnest  prayer 
and  all  was  over.  The  inbred  sin  had  disap- 
peared, Christ  had  now  come  in  and  filled 
his  heart.  The  question  was  settled  and  no 


66       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

more  arguments  were  needed.  It  was  not 
so  much  a  mark  of  addition  as  it  was  a  mark 
of  subtraction.  Indeed  he  said  he  had  too 
much  already.  It  was  the  subtraction  of  the 
roots  of  bitterness,  the  remains  of  the  car- 
nal mind,  the  depraved  nature,  the  self  na- 
ture. Now  there  was  plenty  of  room  for 
the  incoming  of  the  Spirit,  the  Abiding  One, 
the  Holy  Ghost,  the  Comforter,  the  Lord 
Himself.  Before,  the  fighting  was  on  the 
outside  and  inside  also,  now  it  was  all  from 
the  outside. 

It  was  during  this  epoch  in  the  life  of 
M;r.  Meminger  that  he  was  so  successful  as 
an  evangelist,  organizer  and  teacher. 


CHAPTER  VII. 

"I  BELIEVE  IN  THE  FOURFOLD 
GOSPEL." 

IT  was  not  long  after  this  definite  spiritual 
experience,  recorded  in  the  last  chapter, 
that  Wilbur  Meminger  was  compelled  to 
abandon  his  work  as  an  evangelist  on  ac- 
count of  a  bad  throat.  He  could  not  speak 
above  an  ordinary  tone,  which  rendered  him 
useless  as  a  public  speaker.  Miedicinal  sci- 
ence of  all  kinds  and  all  newspaper  schemes 
and  patent  medicines  had  been  tried  to  get 
some  relief;  but  his  throat  steadily  grew 
worse  and  all  hopes  of  ever  being  able  again 
to  speak  in  full  round  tones  had  vanished. 

In  writing  to  Stephen  Merritt  upon  some 
line  of  business,  he  received  the  answer,  and 
after  the  name  this  added  as  a  P.S.,  "I  be- 
lieve in  the  Fourfold  Gospel."  Immediate- 
ly Wilbur  Meminger  began  to  wonder  what 
the  Fourfold  Gospel  was  and  he  asked  his 
minister,  who  was  perfectly  ignorant  of  the 
whole  affair.  He  next  went  to  another 
brother  minister,  Rev.  Mr.  Moses.  He 
thought  surely  that  Moses  would  know  be- 


68       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

cause  Moses  was  so  meek  and  humble.  It 
was  his  good  fortune  to  know  nothing  about 
it. 

Next  he  went  to  another  regular  minister 
in  the  service  and  he  told  him,  "It  is  the 
Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance,  a  New 
York  concern,  with  A.  B.  Simpson  as  the 
ring-leader.  I  don't  know  much  about  it, 
Wilbur,  but  it  is  bad."  A  few  days  later  he 
saw  a  notice  in  a  daily  paper  that  a  Chris- 
tian and  Missionary  Alliance  meeting  would 
be  held  in  the  Methodist  Church  in  Altoona. 
He  now  thought  that  it  could  not  be  so  very 
bad  when  they  were  going  to  hold  it  in  our 
own  Methodist  Episcopal  Church. 

Mr.  Meminger  and  M'r.  Stewart  decided 
to  go  to  this  meeting  and  learn  what  the 
Fourfold  Gospel  really  was.  They  found 
here  a  meeting  whose  doctrine  was  in  har- 
mony with  the  primitive  teaching  of  Meth- 
odism, which  they  professed  and  taught. 

The  profession  and  teaching  of  the  doc- 
trine of  Holiness  by  a  group  of  members 
and  workers  in  the  Methodist  Episcopal 
Church  did  not  bring  them  in  loving  favor 
with  the  pastor  and  less  zealous  members  of 
the  church.  They  were  not  on  the  popular 
side.  From  time  to  time  the  privileges  and 


Fourfold  Gospel  69 

opportunities  for  prayer  and  testimony  were 
curbed  and  it  soon  happened  that  very  few 
were  the  openings  to  testify  to  the  cleans- 
ing blood. 

This  condition  of  affairs  forced  them  to 
organize  a  prayer  band  that  the  exercise  of 
prayer  and  testimony  might  be  continued. 
At  first  it  was  thought  to  organize  "The 
Central  Pennsylvania  Holiness  Associa- 
tion" ;  other  things  were  proposed,  but  final- 
ly the  Tyrone  Auxiliary  of  the  Christian 
and  Missionary  Alliance  was  organized  as 
it  was  then  an  organized  society,  incorpora- 
ted and  in  good  working  order.  The  organ- 
ization had  at  first  about  20  members,  near- 
ly all  of  whom  now  have  pased  over  the 
divide. 

Wilbur  Mieminger  was  elected  President 
and  continued  in  that  office  until  he  removed 
to  Chicago.  Many  people  were  saved  in  the 
meetings,  others  received  the  Holy  Spirit. 
The  attendance  was  large  at  nearly  all  the 
meetings. 

In  December,  1896,  while  on  an  evangel- 
istic tour,  Wilbur  Mieminger  was  burned 
out  the  second  time  by  fire  and  the  stock 
ruined  by  water.  Hie  has  said  himself  that 
the  Lord  had  burned  him  out  twice  and 


70       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

flooded  him  out  twice,  that  He  might  use 
him  in  evangelistic  work  for  the  salvation 
of  others. 

In  1897  Mr.  Meminger  was  called  from 
the  Tyrone  work  of  the  Christian  and  Mis- 
sionary Alliance  to  the  larger  field  of  Chi- 
cago and  the  Northwest.  The  following 
resolutions  were  passed  by  the  Tyrone 
Branch  of  the  Christian  and  Missionary  Al- 
liance and  the  Tuesday  evening  class  of  the 
Old  Methodist  Church  at  the  time  of  his  de- 
parture for  the  Chicago  work. 


CHRISTIAN  AND  MISSIONARY  ALLIANCE. 
TYRONE  BRANCH. 

TYRONE,  July  26,  1897. 

Whereas,  Our  President  and  Brother,  W.  F. 
Meminger,  has  been  appointed  to  the  office  of  Super- 
intendent of  the  Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance 
for  the  West  and  Northwest,  with  headquarters  at 
Chicago,  and  as  he  has  already  left  for  that  field, 

Be  it  Resolved,  That  while  his  departure  from 
among  us  will  be  a  severe  loss,  on  account  of  his 
manliness,  purity  and  strength  of  character,  developed 
in  the  years  of  his  life  with  us  in  Christian  love  and 
fellowship,  nevertheless  we  rejoice  to  know  and  feel 
that  his  new  field  of  labor,  with  its  enlarged  op- 
portunities, will  only  call  forth  from  him  under  the 
blessing  of  God  that  larger  development  of  life  and 


Fourfold  Gospel  71 

character  that  only  comes  from  a  life  yielded  up  to 
God  for  His  service. 

Resolved,  That  while  we  shall  miss  his  wise  coun- 
sels, faithful  admonitions  and  teachings  in  the  deeper 
things  of  God,  we  will  miss  more  than  all  e^se  his 
manly  Christian  bearing,  coupled  with  meekness, 
patience  and  humility  which  adorned  his  walk  among 
us.  Although  separated  by  distance,  we  will  ever 
have  him  on  our  hearts  and  follow  him  with  our 
prayers  in  his  new  life  of  obedience  and  sacrifice, 
praying  and  expecting  that  he  may  realize  the 
promise, 

"Lo,  I  am  with  you  alway." 

TYRONE,  Tuesday  Evening,  July  27,  1897. 

Whereas,  In  the  providence  of  an  all-wise  and 
loving  God  our  heavenly  Father,  our  dear  Brother 
Meminger  has  been  led  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  we  feel 
sure,  to  go  out  from  amongst  us  to  labor  in  a  distant 
part  of  our  Master's  vineyard; 

Resolved,  First,  That  we  recall  with  great  satis- 
faction the  long  and  faithful  service  of  our  dear 
brother,  first  as  class  leader  and  then  as  President  of 
our  Christian  Alliance. 

Resolved,  Second,  That  it  is  with  deep  regret 
that  we  part  with  him  and  we  to  whom  he  has  been 
peculiarly  useful  and  helpful  will  follow  him  with 
tearful  eyes  and  prayerful  wishes  that  our  dear  Lord 
will  go  with  him  to  his  new  field  of  labor,  and  may 
the  moulding  power  of  our  dear  brother's  Godly  life 
be  felt  by  all  who  shall  come  in  contact  with  his 
humble,  teachable,  Christ-like  spirit. 

Resolved,  Third,  That  while  we  sincerely  mourn 


72       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

the  severance  of  ties  which  bound  us  together  as  co- 
workers  with  Jesus  Christ,  we  can  praise  God  that 
while  we  will  be  made  poorer  by  our  loss  of  class 
leader  and  president,  Chicago  will  be  the  richer.  A 
great  and  good  man  has  left  home,  wife  and  children 
and  an  aged  mother,  in  Israel,  and  we  whose  hearts 
were  knit  to  his  as  was  David's  to  Jonathan  and  in 
loving  obedience  to  the  command,  has  left  all  to 
follow  Jesus,  to  give  out  the  Gospel  of  the  Kingdom 
to  others,  we  can  but  say,  who  shall  or  who  can  take 
his  place?  We  ask  who  will  take  up  the  banner  on 
which  is  inscribed,  "Holiness  unto  the  Lord,"  and 
stand  in  all  the  hard  places  our  dear  Brother  Mem- 
inger  did?  Only  the  Master  knows  and  can  make 
us  not  only  submissive  to  our  loss,  but  glad  that 
others  shall  have  our  good. 

No  man  ever  exerted  a  wider  or  better  influence 
in  our  little  city  and  no  man  was  more  highly  es- 
teemed or  more  tenderly  loved,  and  why  should  he 
not  be?  To  very  many  his  life  and  labors  have 
proved  under  God  an  unspeakable  blessing. 

Resolved,  That  we  do  congratulate  our  brethren 
and  friends  of  the  Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance 
in  Chicago,  as  we  recall  the  faithful  and  efficient  life 
of  our  brother.  That  what  is  loss  to  us,  will  be  gain 
for  them,  and  do  commend  him  to  you  in  the 
efforts  that  will  be  put  forth  by  him  for  the  evan- 
gelization of  the  world  and  to  hasten  the  speedy 
coming  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ,  to  the 
end  that  he  may  have  your  confidence  and  prayers 
and  the  help  and  indwelling  of  the  Holy  Spirit  as  he 
seeks  to  win  the  dead  to  life,  to  relieve  and  comfort 
the  sorrowing  and  distressed,  and  to  help  the  suffer- 
ing ones  by  pointing  them  to  Jesus,  who,  with  His 


Fourfold  Gospel  73 

own  touch,  can  impart  His  own  life  and  strength  to 
the  body,  also  in  helping  believers  to  a  higher  and 
fuller  life  in  God,  the  life  of  Jesus  Christ  Himself. 
Also  that  we  further  recognize  that  in  the  making  of 
this  appointment  by  those  in  authority,  a  wise  choice 
has  been  made,  and  that  in  it  all  we  see  the  Bkssed 
leading  of  the  Holy  Spirit;  besides  we  feel  that  one 
has  been  called  from  our  midst  who,  with  his  Spirit- 
filled  life,  will  be  found  faithful  and  true  to  the  trust 
reposed  in  him. 

Signed,  Committee, 

MRS.  ELIZ.  BRIGGS, 
MRS.  R.  M.  WATSON, 
H.  L.  AFRICA, 

Extract  of  the  minutes  of  meeting. 

D.  F.  WALKER,  Vice-President. 

JESSE  S.  STEWART,  Secretary. 
May  the  blessed  abiding  Comforter  go  with  him 
in  all  his  work  and  use  him  wonderfully,  to  the  hast- 
ening of  the  coming  and  kingdom  of  our  blessed 
Lord. 

Yours  in  the  blessed  hope, 

TUESDAY  NIGHT  CLASS. 

Action  was  taken  on  these  resolutions  at  the 
regular  meeting  on  Tuesday  evening,  July  27,  1897, 
and  unanimously  adopted  by  a  standing  vpte. 

H.  L.  AFRICA,  Secretary. 


CHAPTER  VIII. 
GOD    HEALS. 

"Once  it  was  the  blessing, 

Now  it  is  the  Lord; 
Once  it  was  the  feeling, 

Now  it  is  His  Word; 
Once  His  gift  I  wanted, 

Now,  the  Giver  own; 
Once  I  sought  for  healing, 

Now  Himself  alone. 

"All  in  all  forever, 

Jesus  will  I  sing; 
Everything  in  Jesus, 

And  Jesus  everything." 

WHEN  a  boy  Wilbur  Meminger  had 
diphtheria.  His  throat  was  burned 
with  caustic,  which  so  hurt  his 
throat  and  lungs  that  later  he  was  unable 
to  use  his  voice  in  public  speaking  and  suf- 
fered also  from  lung  trouble.  He  went  to 
Philadelphia  to  consult  a  good  physician, 
and  by  him  was  advised  to  put  his  affairs  in 
order  as  he  had  about  six  weeks  to  live. 
"You  cannot  live  and  you  might  as  well 
know  it.  If  you  are  going  home,  do  not  go 


God  Heals  75 

at  night.    You  are  apt  to  take  cold  and  die 
suddenly." 

This  was  just  about  the  time  when  he 
first  heard  of  the  "Fourfold  Gospel."  Know- 
ing that  the  Christian  and  Missionary  Alli- 
ance was  to  hold  an  all-day  meeting  at  Al- 
toona  he  decided  to  attend  to  hear  about  this 
healing  which  they  taught.  Hardly  able 
to  get  to  the  station,  he  started  out.  He  at- 
tended the  meeting,  but  nothing  was  said 
about  Divine  Healing  until  a  little  woman 
in  the  corner  rose  and  said  to  the  leader, 
"Brother,  you  haven't  had  any  testimonies." 
"That  is  so,"  said  Mtr.  Senft,  "let  us  have  a 
few."  And  the  message  to  the  sick  man 
came  from  the  little  woman  who  asked  for 
testimonies.  In  her  own  testimony  she 
spoke  of  "Divine  Healing,  and  all  the  way 
home  the  words  rang  in  Mr.  Meminger's 
ears,  "Divine  healing,  Divine  healing." 
Reaching  home  he  took  his  Bible  and 
searched  it  to  find  whether  these  things 
were  so,  and  he  found  "Divine  Healing" 
written  large  and  clear  in  many  places.  He 
also  read  James  v.  14,  and  wondered  where 
he  could  get  an  elder  to  anoint  him.  He 
later  learned  that  Mr.  Senft  was  to  be  at 
Altoona  and  again  he  took  the  journey  to 


76       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

Altoona.  He  met  Mr.  Senft  at  the  station. 
Mr.  Senft  had  already  purchased  his  ticket 
to  return  to  another  town,  but  he  changed 
his  mind,  deciding  to  wait  a  little.  Mr. 
Meminger  felt  it  was  God's  arrangement  for 
him  in  MV.  Senft's  change  of  mind;  and  go- 
ing up  to  the  house  where  the  meetings  were 
held  he  was  anointed.  In  referring  to  it 
later  Mr.  Meminger  said,  "I  just  drew  a  long 
breath  and  was  healed." 

He  returned  home,  his  wife  meeting  him 
at  the  door.  He  said,  "Wife,  it  is  all  right ; 
I  am  healed."  His  wife  saw  only  a  red 
flush  on  his  face  and  expected  a  fit  of 
coughing.  They  had  family  prayers  and 
retired.  Immediately  the  devil  was  on  the 
scene  in  various  ways,  trying  to  make  Mr. 
Meminger  doubt  the  Lord  and  His  healing. 
He  arose  and  settled  the  controversy  on  his 
knees  and  once  again  went  to  bed  and  slept. 
He  awakened  at  about  twelve  o'clock,  only 
to  find  his  wife  crying.  "What  is  the  mat- 
ter?" he  asked.  "Now  that  I  am  healed  is  it 
going  to  come  on  you?  Are  you  sick?" 

But  she  was  crying  for  joy  as  she  realized 
as  he  slept  so  well  that  he  was  truly  healed. 
After  his  healing  his  voice  returned  to  him, 


God  Heals  77 

and  his  voice  could  be  heard  above  anything 
he  had  experienced  before. 

During  all  the  previous  experiences  of 
Mr.  Mieminger,  in  his  class  meetings,  evan- 
gelistic meetings  and  revivals  in  the  church 
of  which  he  was  a  member,  he  was  never 
known  to  sing.  Some  time  after  he  was 
healed  he  received  the  fulness  of  Jesus  into 
his  body  and  he  began  to  sing.  At  first  it 
was  not  so  loud,  but  increased  in  tone  and 
volume,  until  he  could  lead  in  singing  and 
roll  out  the  praises  of  God  in  song  as  he  was 
wont  to  do  in  prayer  and  preaching.  It 
seemed  a  great  relief  when  he  could  give 
vent  to  melody  in  this  way.  In  many  places 
afterward  he  was  obliged  to  do  all  the  sing- 
ing as  well  as  all  the  praying  and  preaching. 

And  his  teaching  and  testimony  on  this 
line  gave  forth  no  uncertain  sound.  "God 
Heals"  was  a  favorite  theme  with  him.  At 
one  of  the  New  York  conventions  of  the 
Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance  a  very 
condensed  report  was  taken  of  one  of  his 
addresses  on  this  subject,  and  is  worthy  of 
reproduction : 

"Our  desire  to  be  healed  should  be  for 
service  for  God  and  to  glorify  Him  in  our 


78       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

bodies,  and  if  we  are  right  with  God  along 
other  lines  we  shall- have  very  little  trouble 
along  this  line.  Some  cannot  understand  it, 
and  are  not  able  to  see  it  until  they  are 
anointed  every  time  a  new  man  conies  into 
the  neighborhood.  No  man  ever  healed  any- 
body on  the  face  of  the  earth.  God  heals, 
no  matter  to  whom  you  attribute  it.  God 
heals  no  matter  to  whom  you  give  the  cred- 
it. God  heals  because  He  said  so,  and  I  be- 
lieve Him.  Do  you?  'I  am  the  Lord  that 
healeth  thee.'  Glory  to  His  precious  name ! 
"Oh,  how  we  need  the  Holy  Spirit  along 
these  lines  to  keep  us  safe !  He  is  a  remark- 
able Teacher,  and  it  is  His  business  to  make 
these  things  plain.  There  are  a  lot  of  talks 
on  divine  healing  that  I  do  not  understand, 
and  there  is  a  great  deal  of  lofty  teaching 
that  I  do  not  understand,  but  I  understand 
this,  'Christ  liveth  in  me.'  That  is  the  great- 
est, most  stupendous  of  all  things,  and  the 
Holy  Spirit  had  to  wake  me  up  one  night  to 
teach  it  to  me.  Oh,  we  must  know  the  Holy 
Spirit,  that  He  may  show  us  all  these  things 
and  make  them  simple.  Salvation  is  very 
plain,  sanctification  is  very  plain,  divine 
healing  is  very  plain.  The  Word  tells  us  of 
the  whole  plan  of  salvation  from  beginning 


God  Heals  79 

to  end,  that  the  wayfaring  man  need  not  err 
therein.  How  much  worse  off  are  you  than 
the  hobo,  that  you  cannot  understand  it? 
The  hobo,  the  fellow  that  sleeps  under  the 
hay  stack  and  gets  his  meals  very  irregular- 
ly, and  wears  old  clothes,  why  he  can  under- 
stand all  about  it.  What  is  the  matter  with 
us  then?  We  are  not  given  up  to  God.  We 
say  we  are.  We  have  been  to  the  altar  and 
confessed  that  we  are  sanctified.  We  testi- 
fy that  we  are  filled  with  the  Holy  Ghost. 
We  testify  about  all  these  things,  but  we 
must  have  the  Holy  Spirit  to  teach  us  these 
things  or  we  are  all  wrong. 

"Oh,  what  we  want  is  confession  as  to 
our  real  condition  before  God.  The  man  or 
woman  that  is  right  before  God  just  believes 
because  he  cannot  help  it. 

"I  am  so  glad  that  when  I  was  way  down 
with  disease,  and  had  physicians — the  $2.00 
kind  that  you  pay  for — and  was  so  tired  of 
everything  on  that  line,  that  the  dear  Lord 
spoke  to  me  in  much  simplicity,  and  the 
precious  Word  of  God  was  backed  up  by  the 
Holy  Spirit — and  that  was  the  way  that  I 
was  led.  I  know  now  that  Christ  liveth  in 
me,  and  the  Holy  Spirit  displaces  disease 
with  the  resurrected  life  of  Jesus. 


80       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

"I  am  so  glad  this  thing  is  so  plain.  No- 
body need  be  turned  away  on  account  of  not 
understanding  it.  We  don't  have  to  under- 
stand the  Greek  version  to  get  there.  I 
pray  you  this  morning  let  the  Holy  Spirit 
search  you.  Please  do  not  turn  your  heart 
over  and  turn  it  inside  out  any  more  to  look 
at  it  yourself.  "The  heart  is  deceitful  above 
all  things  and  desperately  wicked." 

"I  remember  a  lady  over  on  the  west  side 
of  Chicago  some  time  ago  who  was  ill.  She 
had  been  anointed  several  times  but  not 
healed.  And  they  wanted  us  to  go  over  there 
and  pray  with  her  and  anoint  her.  They 
said,  'She  is  a  good  woman,  and  if  the  Lord 
heals  anybody  He  will  heal  her.'  And  I 
said,  'He  will  not  heal  her  for  that.'  'But 
she  is  a  good  woman,  a  worker  in  the  Sun- 
day school,'  etc.  So  we  went  over  to  see 
her.  And  I  had  a  very  pleasant  conversa- 
tion with  her,  but  found  she  was  not  ready 
to  be  healed.  So  I  had  prayer  with  her  and 
gave  her  some  passages  of  Scripture  and 
left  her;  and  in  a  few  days  we  went  over 
again  to  see  her  and  got  all  ready  to  anoint 
her.  But  I  could  not  anoint  her,  I  could 
not.  I  said,  'We  will  have  to  have  another 
prayer  before  we  can  go  on  with  this,'  and 


MRS.    WIU'.UR    MEM1XGER    AXD    THREE   SONS. 


God  Heals  81 

down  I  went  on  my  knees  and  prayed  for 
myself,  and  I  do  not  know  that  I  ever  agon- 
ized more  in  prayer  than  I  did  that  time. 
I  forgot  everybody  that  was  in  the  room 
and  even  the  sick  woman  that  we  had  come 
to  anoint.  Nobody  knew  what  was  the  mat- 
ter with  Brother  Meminger,  until  after  a 
while  this  sister,  this  great  teacher,  cried 
out,  'God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner.'  She 
was  not  saved  before,  but  now  she  was 
ready  to  be  anointed.  Oh,  the  Lord  help  us 
to  realize  something  of  the  wiles  of  the  ad- 
versary, our  God  wants  us  to  be  fully  saved. 
God  wants  us  healed.  He  does  want  us  to 
be  free,  indeed." 

The  Rev.  Mr.  W.  Mfcyser,  of  India,  re- 
lates the  following  incident  which  occurred 
on  Mr.  Meminger's  first  trip  to  the  Pacific 
Coast  in  1900.  Mrs.  Moyser  had  then  just 
returned  to  this  country  after  nearly  eight 
years  of  service  on  the  field.  She  had 
worked  hard  in  the  schools  and  gone 
through  famines,  and  it  seemed  as  if  her 
blood  was  poisoned  with  washing  and  car- 
ing for  so  many  stricken  ones  who  were  lit- 
erally covered  with  sores  during  the  trying 
days  of  famine.  Her  face  was  covered  with 
large  boils.  Her  whole  system  was  entirely 


82       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

run  down  and  she  was  on  the  verge  of  nerv- 
ous prostration  and  weighed  only  95  pounds. 
"She  had  preceded  me,"  said  Mr.  M'oyser, 
"to  the  homeland  and  was  staying  with  Mrs. 
E.  J.  Scudder  in  Santa  Barbara.  The  mid- 
winter Alliance  Convention  was  being  held 
in  Los  Angeles  where  Mrs.  Moyser  was  to 
have  spoken.  She  went  to  Los  Angeles ;  but 
was  so  weak,  discouraged  and  broken  down 
that  she  could  not  leave  her  room  or  her 
bed.  Mrs.  Scudder,  a  woman  of  prayer, 
called  in  Rev.  W.  C.  Stevens,  now  of  Nyack, 
and  Mr.  M'eminger  to  pray  for  Mrs.  Moyser. 
Mr.  Meminger  in  his  prayer  asked  and 
claimed  'a  blanket  healing,'  a  healing  that 
would  cover  everything,  and  somehow  that 
unique  expression,  'blanket  healing/  re- 
vived Mrs.  M|oyser's  faith  and  the  Lord 
healed  her  completely.  She  arose  at  once  and 
spoke  in  the  meeting.  From  that  time  she 
was  no  longer  troubled  on  these  lines  and 
she  now  weighs  150  pounds." 

A  friend  in  whose  home  he  stayed  when 
last  out  on  the  Coast  writes : 

"I  cannot  yet  bring  myself  to  the  full  real- 
ization that  our  dearly  loved  Brother  Mem- 
inger has  really  passed  beyond.  How  clear- 
ly some  of  those  Spirit-filled  messages  he 


God  Heals  83 

gave  while  here  stand  out  in  my  memory, 
never,  never  to  be  forgotten. 

"His  portrayal  of  the  devil  with  his 
numerous  disguises,  how  when  he  is  recog- 
nized in  one  disguise  how  quickly  he  van- 
ishes only  to  appear  shortly  in  some  other, 
and  how  untiring  he  is  in  this  mode  of  de- 
ceiving, has  been  more  help  to  me  than 
anything  else  of  all  his  good  messages.  It 
has  been  a  daily  help  to  me  for  a  whole  year 
and  the  Lord  has  put  in  my  heart  to  pass  it 
on  where  it  has  again  proved  a  blessing. 

"I  have  so  many  beautiful  things  to  re- 
member about  him.  The  way  he  talked  with 
God  when  my  cousins  were  almost  gone 
with  scarlet  fever.  No  hope  at  all  the  doc- 
tors said.  Dear  Brother  Meminger  pleaded 
for  their  lives  to  be  spared  as  earnestly  as 
if  they  had  been  his  own  children,  and  how 
thankful  he  was  when  they  were  raised  up." 

The  night  before  Mr.  Mieminger  was 
called  home,  he  and  his  wife  spent  several 
hours  until  one  in  the  morning  praying  for 
deliverance  for  one,  a  guest  in  the  Mission- 
ary Home,  New  York,  who  was  attending 
the  convention  and  who  had  been  taken 
seriously  ill. 

Still  later  on  the  same  day,  and  only  about 
four  hours  before  his  decease,  he  prayed 


84       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

with  another  who  writes  of  that  visit  and 
prayer. 

"What  a  mighty  prayer  went  up  to  the 
throne  of  God  as  he  placed  his  hand  on  my 
head  .  We  seemed  almost  in  the  actual  pres- 
ence of  Jesus,  the  Mighty  to  save  and  heal. 
The  wires  were  surely  all  connected ;  the 
answer  came  in  a  current  of  life  from  on 
high,  and  I  have  been  well  ever  since.  All 
praise  to  God  for  His  healing  power  and 
for  His  great  goodness  and  love  in  allowing 
me  this  great  and  precious  privilege. 

"This  was  about  4  o'clock  P.M1.  on  the 
day  he  was  received  into  the  presence  of  his 
Lord.  God  has  taken  one  of  these  dear 
friends,  but  the  sweet  influence  of  their 
prayers  will  go  with  me  always,  as  I  labor 
on  for  the  Master  and  realize  day  by  day 
the  answer  to  this  parting  prayer  and  bless- 
ing in  my  life  and  the  work  God  has  placed 
me  in. 

"His  parting  word  as  he  passed  out  our 
door,  never  to  speak  with  us  again  in  this 
life,  was:  Til  remember  you.'  What  a 
blessed  thought  that  in  glory  our  dear 
Brother  Mieminger  is  still  praying  and 
speaking  to  the  Master  of  the  needs  of  those 
who  are  left. 

"NELLIE  A.  COOK." 


CHAPTER  IX. 
INSPIRED  PETITIONS. 

WILBUR  MEMINGER  was  notably  a 
man  of  prayer.  Nothing  was  too 
small  to  take  to  the  Lord,  and  when 
he  did  he  always  expected  the  answer. 

He  approached  the  throne  of  grace  with 
confidence,  believing  the  things  he  asked  for 
were  to  be  handed  out  to  him  and  his  sup- 
porters. 

One  day  in  a  Western  town  he  was  im- 
pressed to  call  upon  a  Christian  brother. 
He  came  upon  him  unexpectedly  and  found 
him  with  his  head  on  his  desk  crying. 

"What  is  the  matter?"  he  asked,  and  the 
reply  was,  "Oh,  Brother  Meminger,  I  am 
going  to  lose  all  I  have  and  bring  discredit 
upon  the  cause  of  Christ." 

His  factory  was  about  to  be  sold  through 
a  forced  sale,  and  there  seemed  to  be  no 
help  for  it. 

"Have  you  taken  it  to  the  Lord?" 

"Do  you  think  this  is  worth  telling  the 
Lord  about?" 

"Certainly,"  replied  Mt.  Meminger,  and 


86       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

calling  his  friend's  wife,  she  spread  papers 
out  on  the  floor  and  they  knelt  down  and 
together  prayed.  First  the  owner  of  the 
factory  prayed  and  broke  down,  then  the 
wife  prayed  and  broke  down,  then  Mr.  Mem- 
inger  prayed  and  broke  down ;  but  they 
arose  in  victory.  They  parted  and  this 
brother  and  his  wife  lay  down  that  night  to 
peaceful  slumber. 

In  another  town  some  miles  distant  there 
was  a  lawyer  who  had  no  connection  what- 
ever with  the  matter  of  selling  this  factory. 
He  was  awakened  that  night  and  could  not 
get  rid  of  the  impression  that  he  should 
buy  the  factory  which  was  for  sale.  He 
felt  that  there  was  something  crooked  about 
the  transaction  which  he  did  not  understand 
and  he  told  his  wife  about  it.  She  advised 
him  to  go  to  sleep  and  mind  his  own  busi- 
ness, saying  that  he  had  not  been  called  to 
take  up  the  case,  and,  therefore,  it  might  ap- 
pear as  interference ;  but  he  was  so  strong- 
ly impressed  to  look  into  the  matter  that 
the  following  morning  he  went  straight  to 
the  city  where  the  factory  was  located.  A 
Mir.  B  who  had  it  in  his  mind  to  purchase 
the  factory,  was  under  the  impression  that 
the  sale  was  to  take  place  in  the  afternoon. 


Inspired  Petitions  87 

This  was  a  misunderstanding  as  the  sale 
took  place  in  the  morning.  Mr.  B.  there- 
fore, was  not  present  when  the  sale  was  con- 
ducted, but  the  lawyer  was,  and  he  pur- 
chased the  factory.  He  then  sent  immediate 
word  to  the  original  proprietor  telling  him 
that  he  had  purchased  the  factory  and  thus 
saved  him  from  discredit. 

One  in  writing  of  Wilbur  Meminger's 
confidence  in  God,  says : 

"Often  I  have  seen  him  pray  when  the 
heavens  seemed  as  brass  and  faith  was  far 
from  any  of  us;  when  the  ranks  of  the  evil 
one  seemed  impregnable ;  again  and  again 
the  attacks  seemed  to  be  driven  back  with- 
out any  success.  At  these  times  he  seemed 
to  realize  that  one  could  chase  a  thousand 
and  two  put  ten  thousand  to  flight,  and  he 
would  then  deliberately  and  calmly  plead 
the  precious  blood  as  our  only  salvation. 
Then  by  faith  he  gave  that  great  and  grand 
'Hallelujah!  Glory  to  God!'  like  a  thunder 
bolt  out  of  a  clear  sky,  and  with  a  shout  of 
victory  he  cut  his  way  through  the  ranks 
of  the  enemy  and  flanked  them  on  the  right 
and  on  the  left  until  victory  was  seen  on  all 
sides. 

"I    have    seen    him    called  upon  to  pray 


88       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

when  there  was  seeming  defeat  in  a  revival 
meeting  and  after  such  a  prayer  I  have  seen 
men  and  women  rush  to  the  altar  in  large 
numbers. 

"Lord,  teach  us  how  to  pray!" 

One  of  his  favorite  themes  was  "Inspired 
Petitions."  He  believed  that  prayer  should 
be  indited  by  the  Holy  Ghost.  The  follow- 
ing is  one  of  his  characteristic  addresses  on 
the  subject,  "Praying  in  the  Holy  Ghost." 

"That  we  do  much  praying  not  in  the 
Holy  Ghost,  needs  only  to  be  stated.  We 
do  not  know  Him  as  we  might;  are  not 
yielded  fully  as  we  ought  to  be,  and  do  not 
pray  in  Him,  or  He  does  not  pray  in  us; 
does  not  indite  the  prayer.  We  make  most 
of  our  prayers,  and  what  prayers  we  do 
make!  We  adopt  the  language  of  others — 
imitation  prayers,  cut  and  dried  prayers, 
made  so  by  frequent  use.  Threadbare  pray- 
ers, every  member  of  the  family,  familiar 
with  the  morning  prayer,  a  cut  and  dried 
prayer  for  the  Sunday  school — many  of  the 
scholars  familiar  with  it,  know  what  will 
come  when  you  begin.  Long  drawn  out 
prayers,  no  end  while  memory  continues  to 
suggest ;  a  sense  of  relief  comes  to  our  hear- 
ers that  nothing  broke,  that  we  got  safely 


Inspired  Petitions  89 

through,  clear  through  to  the  end.  Then 
there  is  the  regular  prayer  for  Wednesday 
night  prayer  meeting.  My  growth  in  grace 
was  greatly  hindered  by  hearing  some  cut 
and  dried  prayers  week  after  week.  When 
our  Pastor  would  call  on  Bro.  A.  to  pray  I 
knew  just  what  he  would  say,  or  if  he  called 
on  Sister  B.  I  very  soon  knew  them  by 
heart,  nearly  all  of  them.  My  head  would 
drop  as  I  wondered  how — those  whose  feet 
had  taken  fast  hold  upon  destruction,  and 
the  Lord  in  mercy  had  turned  them  clear 
around,  and  started  them  toward  the  Celes- 
tial City:  whose  feet  had  been  digged  from 
the  miry  clay,  out  of  a  horrible  pit,  and 
placed  upon  the  Solid  Rock,  and  a  new 
song  put  in  their  mouth — I  did  wish  He 
would  put  a  new  prayer  in  their  hearts, 
even  in  their  mouths — could  pray  as  they 
did. 

"Listen  to  some  of  these  prayers.    Let  us 
select  the  last  Wednesday  night  in  July  or 
the  first  Wednesday  night  in  August. 
"THE  HEATED  TERM. 

"The  church  is  more  than  50  years  old, 
and  never  had  a  revival  in  the  summer.  Lis- 
ten ;  Bro.  A  is  called  on.  'O  Lord,  revive 
Thy  work!' — Surely  needed  so  we  all  say 


90       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

Amen !  'Grant  that  every  house  in  this  city 
shall  become  a  house  of  prayer.'  Sweeping 
— revival  sure.  He  continues :  'Grant  that 
every  heart  in  this  city  shall  be  made  a  fit 
temple  for  Thy  Holy  Spirit.'  Still  on  he 
goes,  'Grant  that  sinners  shall  flock  to  our 
altars,  as  the  dove  to  the  window  of  the 
ark.'  Reference  made  here  to  the  dove  that 
Noah  released  from  the  ark,  before  the  wa- 
ters of  the  Flood  had  dried  up,  and  finding 
no  place  to  rest  its  feet  upon,  was  compelled 
to  return  to  the  ark.  A  deluge  of  salvation, 
to  sweep  everything  and  everybody  before 
it :  appeared  to  be  the  prayer.  Amen !  is 
reached  at  last.  Now  what?  We  all  arose 
from  our  knees — the  long  meter  doxology 
was  sung — benediction  pronounced — all  re- 
turned to  our  homes.  Revival?  No.  Sin- 
ners at  the  altar?  No,  no,  it  is  the  heated 
term.  No  revival  expected  before  the  first 
of  January,  and  not  at  all  sure  about  it  then. 
Oh,  think  of  it!  And  he  was  talking  to 
God.  Flow  of  thought,  clothed  with  choic- 
est language,  offered  in  well  rounded  peri- 
ods, may  not  be 

"PRAYING  IN  THE  HOLY  GHOST. 
"Up   in   the   State   of   Maine,   not   many 


Inspired  Petitions  91 

miles  from  Old  Orchard,  lived  a  man  who 
had  purchased  a  farm  not  the  most  fertile, 
so  that,  to  improve  the  farm  and  raise  the 
family,  compelled  them  to  practice  the  most 
rigid  economy.  The  father  had  been  a 
Christian  for  many  years.  Family  prayer 
every  morning,  but  oh,  such  a  dry  old 
prayer;  same  one  every  morning.  Family 
had  grown  up,  but  were  not  saved.  The 
father  had  grown  hard,  always  a  storm 
when  money  was  paid  out.  The  father  at- 
tended the  Alliance  convention  at  Old  Or- 
chard and  came  under  conviction,  realized 
his  need  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  got  down  in 
the  straw — and  received  the  Hjoly  Ghost — 
returned  to  his  home,  and  the  very  first 
morning,  at  family  worship,  all  noticed 
father  had  a  new  prayer.  The  girls  nudged 
each  other,  and  said,  "Listen !"  And  all  did 
listen.  The  father  was  praying  in  the  Holy 
Ghost. 

"Not  long  after  this  Old  Folk's  Day  came. 
Their  house  was  full  of  guests  for  dinner. 
The  old  china  ware,  150  years  old,  was  in 
use,  and  greatly  admired  of  all.  After  din- 
ner, one  of  the  daughters  dropped  the  prin- 
cipal dish  of  the  set  and  broke  it  all  to 
pieces,  too  bad  to  be  mended.  She  was  in  a 


92       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

fright ;  mother  would  be  grieved,  but  father 
would  storm.  What  to  do  she  did  not  know. 
Confession  must  be  made  with  trembling 
heart.  She  met  her  father  on  the  cellar 
steps,  with  a  bag  of  potatoes  on  his  shoul- 
der. This  she  thought  was  a  favorable  mo- 
ment. She  quickly  made  her  confession,  and 
waited  for  the  storm  to  break.  He  said, 
'Your  mother  will  be  grieved  beyond  meas- 
ure.' Then  with  his  left  hand  he  brushed 
the  hair  back  from  her  braid,  and  said,  'But 
you  are  a  dear  good  girl.  You  would  not  do 
it,  if  you  could  help  it,  I  know.'  Away  she 
ran  and  with  a  gladdened  heart  called  the 
other  girls  and  told  them  all,  what  father 
had  said  and  done,  and  they  all  concluded 
that 

"FATHER  WILL  NOT  LIVE  LONG. 

"What  a  different  state  of  affairs  now — 
the  morning  worship  a  time  of  refreshing — 
within  a  few  months  every  member  of  that 
family  saved — the  morning  prayer,  the  fam- 
ily altar  will  never  be  forgotten  by  the  chil- 
dren. 

"Major  B.,  of  Cleveland,  received  a  letter 
from  India  from  one  of  our  most  devoted 
missionaries,  asking  special  prayer  for  a 


Inspired  Petitions  93 

class  of  girls,  under  the  care  of  this  sister — 
an  urgent  request.  He  had  prayed  for  them 
before,  but  none  of  them  were  saved.  One 
day  he  left  his  work,  hid  away  and  prayed. 
The  missionary  had  taught  the  lesson — was 
about  to  dismiss  the  class  again  without  any 
sign  of  improvement.  One  of  the  girls  burst 
into  tears,  lay  her  head  on  the  shoulder  of 
the  missionary  and  asked  for  prayer;  then 
another,  and  another  until  the  class  were  all 
saved  but  one — they  prayed  in  the  Holy 
Ghost. 

"While  holding  a  local  convention  in 
northern  Wisconsin,  I  noticed  a  fine  look- 
ing old  gentleman  at  each  session  would 
take  his  seat  just  inside  the  door.  He  paid 
close  attention  to  all  that  was  said  and  done ; 
but  never  raised  his  hand  for  prayer  for  self 
or  others.  I  tried  to  speak  to  him  at  the 
close  of  service,  but  he  would  leave  before 
I  reached  the  door.  The  last  night  had 
come.  Theme  of  the  evening,  getting  right 
with  God  ourselves,  that  He  might  work 
with  us,  and  pray  through  us,  that  our  kith 
and  kin  might  be  saved.  The  interest  the 
Lord  has  in  the  whole  family  was  dwelt 
upon — and  at  the  altar  and  in  the  pew  differ- 
ences were  fixed  up,  quarrels  were  settled. 


94       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

The  Lord  put  His  seal  of  approval  upon  the 
truth.  Some  were  saved,  quite  a  number 
were  sanctified,  sealed.  But  the  old  gentle- 
man with  snow  white  hair  and  whiskers 
would  not  come  near. 

"Convention  closed,  nearly  all  had  gone 
home.  The  old  gentleman  came  up  the  aisle 
to  me,  and  said,  "Do  you  say  if  I  get  right 
with  God,  he  will  save  my  son,  who  is  a 
drunkard,  who  broke  his  mother's  heart, 
and  sent  her  to  the  grave  15  years  before 
her  time;  who  is  now  a  fugitive  from  jus- 
tice— I  know  not  where  he  is?  I  replied, 
The  Lord  sent  us  word  by  way  of  the  jail 
at  Philippi — ''Believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  and  thou  shalt  be  saved,  and  thy 
house.'  The  old  gentleman  stated  his  case 
again.  I  asked  him,  Have  you  done  all  you 
can  for  your  son?  Mention  was  made  of 
sacrifice  made — homestead  mortgaged  to 
make  good  some  of  his  crooked  work,  etc. 
I  said,  'Have  you  forgiven  him?'  'No,  I 
cannot  forgive  him — my  heart  has  turned  to 
stone.'  But  I  said,  'We  pray,  Forgive  us 
our  trespasses  as  we  forgive  those  who  tres- 
pass against  us.  You  cannot  pray  in  the 
Holy  Ghost  unless  you  do  forgive  him ;  if 
you  will  ask  the  Lord  to  help  you  to  for- 


Inspired  Petitions  95 

give  him,  we  will  all  kneel  down  with  you, 
and  join  you  in  the  prayer.  Down  we  went, 
we  put  our  arms  around  him,  and  he  be- 
gan— it  was  hard  work — he  began  some  old 
prayer,  but  broke  down,  raised  his  head  and 
while  trembling  with  emotion  said,  'O  God, 
forgive  me  for  not  forgiving  my  son.'  In 
an  instant  relief  came.  His  face  brightened, 
a  new,  strange  light  shone  from  his  eyes, 
and  as  we  arose  from  our  knees  he  said, 
'Whether  my  son  is  saved  or  not  I  do  not 
know,  but  something  tremendous  has  taken 
place.'  We  all  said  Amen — loud. 

"Six  months  or  less  after  this,  I  returned, 
on  a  cold  day  in  early  winter.  A  few  snow 
flakes  were  in  the  air.  At  the  station  I  was 
met  by  an  old  friend  who  called  me  Brother 
M.eminger  now,  instead  of  Mr.  Said  I  was 
to  be  his  guest.  We  had  scarcely  left  the 
platform  when  he  began  talking  about  his 
son.  Informed  me  that  he  was  saved,  and 
drawing  a  letter  from  his  pocket,  gave  it 
to  me  to  read.  As  it  was  quite  cold  I  was 
about  to  put  it  in  my  pocket  intending  to 
read  it  when  we  reached  the  house,  but  no, 
he  said,  'You  have  a  share  in  it,  and  must 
read  it  now.'  I  opened  the  letter  and  began 
to  read.  Mailed  in  Texas.  'Dear  father  and 


96       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

mother — (he  did  not  know  his  mother  was 
dead,  or  that  he  had  broken  her  heart)  I 
know  you  will  not  believe  what  I  am  writ- 
ing, but  it  is  as  true  as  preaching.  God 
for  Christ's  sake  has  forgiven  all  my  sins.' 
We  were  both  in  tears  by  this  time.  The 
people  looked  at  us,  reading  a  letter  in  the 
cold,  and  tears  filling  our  eyes.  I  suppose 
they  thought,  there  goes  a  pair  of  fools ;  but 
what  did  we  care  what  they  thought.  We 
were  in  the  heavenlies  with  Jesus. 

"The  letter  said:  'A  straggling  evangel- 
ist came  to  town  but  was  unable  to  secure 
the  church  for  services,  so  he  preached  on 
the  streets.  We  could  not  help  noticing  his 
earnestness.  (Dear  reader,  has  any  one  no- 
ticed your  earnestness  in  the  Master's 'work  ? 
Or  are  you  floating  along,  "calm  and  serene 
as  a  midsummer  night's  dream"?)  At  last 
he  secured  a  room  over  the  saloon  where  we 
drank  and  gambled.  One  night  me  and  four 
of  my  Buttes,  were  lined  up  at  the  bar  tak- 
ing our  whiskey  straight,  when  we  heard 
them  singing, 

"'"Rock  of  Ages,  cleft  for  me, 
Let  me  hide  myself  in  thee." 

"  'We  thought  of  home,  and  the  good  old 


Inspired  Petitions  97 

days,  my  heart  became  tender,  arid  I  said, 
"Boys,  by  the  help  of  God  I'll  never  drink 
another  drop."  They  said,  "We  are  with 
you."  We  poured  our  whiskey  on  the  floor. 
We  climbed  the  steps  to  the  meeting  room, 
heard  the  message,  gave  up  our  life  of  sin, 
and  by  His  grace  will  serve  Him  all  our 
days.' 

"That  son  has  visited  his  aged  father 
since,  and  although  the  marks  of  his  sinful 
life  may  still  be  read  in  his  face,  when  he 
confesses  Christ  in  song  or  testimony,  his 
face  brightens -with  light  all  divine.  He  is 
preparing  for  a  life  of  usefulness,  as  a  har- 
vest hand — the  balance  of  his  days. 

"Fathers!  mothers!  forgive,  forgive  your 
wayward  sons  and  daughters,  and  'be  filled 
with  the  Spirit.' 

'  'Likewise  the  Spirit  also  helpeth  our  in- 
firmities; for  we  know  not  what  we  should 
pray  for  as  we  ought;  but  the  Spirit  Him- 
self maketh  intercession  for  us  with  groan- 
ings  which  cannot  be  uttered.' 

"  'And  He  that  searcheth  the  hearts  know- 
eth  what  is  the  mind  of  Spirit,  because  He 
maketh  intercession  for  the  saints,  accord- 
ing to  the  will  of  God'  (Rom.  viii.  26,  27). 

"Prayer  in  the  Holy  Spirit  is  not  dry, 


98       "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

hard,  set,  long,  tedious  or  wearisome ;  but  is 
fresh,  crisp,  refreshing  and  inspiring.  Like 
the  mountain  spring  bursting  out  between 
the  rock  ribs  into  the  sunlight,  leaping  down 
the  mountain  side,  refreshing  the  flowers, 
moistening  the  roots  of  the  giant  oaks, 
quenching  the  thirst  of  the  woodman,  giving 
the  mill  wheels  of  commerce  power — now  a 
river  into  which  comes  the  drainage  of  a 
hundred  cities — sin,  sickness,  sorrow,  etc., 
borne  afar  into  the  salt  ocean  of  GOD  is 
LOVE. 

"Oh,  for  united  prayer  that  we  be  brought 
quickly  into  the  relationship  with  God,  and 
man,  when  we  will  pray  in  the  Holy  Ghost !" 


CHAPTER  X. 
THE  LORD'S  COMING. 

"He  is  not  a  disappointment! 

He  is  coming  by  and  by, 
In  my  heart  I  have  the  witness 

That  His  coming  draweth  nigh; 
All  the  scoffers  may  despise  me, 

And  no  change  around  may  see; 
But  He  tells  me  He  is  coming, 

And  that's  quite  enough  for  me." 

ANOTHER  truth  which  was  especially 
dear  to  his  heart  and  which  affected 
all  his  service  for  God  was  the  truth 
of  the  pre-millennial  coming  of  the  Lord 
Jesus.  He  was  very  fond  of  telling  of  a 
woman  of  his  acquaintance  who  refused  to 
believe  in  the  pre-millennial  coming  of  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ.  But  one  day  she  sent 
for  him  and  related  this  dream  she  had  had. 
It  was  in  the  city  of  Chicago.  She  went  out 
to  do  her  marketing  one  Saturday  morning 
and  on  the  way  she  noted  that  everyone  was 
going  in  one  direction.  She  could  not  un- 
derstand this  and  asked  one  and  another 
why  were  the  people  going  East.  The  only 
reply  she  got  was,  "Why,  don't  you  know  ?" 


ioo     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

But  they  would  pass  on  without  telling  her. 
Then  she  noticed  the  people  were  running 
to  the  East  and  she  dropped  her  own  bun- 
dles and  ran  with  them.  She  reached  the 
lake  shore,  but  could  hardly  get  through 
the  crowd.  She  saw  beautiful  clouds  with 
all  the  tints  of  the  rainbow.  From  beneath 
these  clouds  came  a  pair  of  beautiful  hands, 
whose  they  were  she  did  not  know.  The 
people  all  seemed  to  have  packages  which 
they  were  placing  into  these  beautiful 
hands.  The  packages  would  disappear  and 
the  people  would  follow  into  the  clouds. 
She  noticed  a  poor  washerwoman  come  with 
her  bundles  carried  in  her  apron.  How  she 
longed  to  go  into  these  clouds  although  she 
couldn't  understand  them.  Turning  to  a 
policeman  she  asked  what  it  was  all  about. 
"Won't  you  please  explain  it  to  me?" 
"Why,  don't  you  know?  Jesus  has  come." 
"What  are  those  people  doing?" 
"They  are  handing  Him  their  bundles  and 
going  in  with  Him  to  live  there."  And  she 
wanted  still  more  to  go;  but  the  policeman 
asked  her,  "Where  are  your  bundles?"  and 
she  had  to  reply  that  she  had  none. 

"What   have  you   been   doing  all    these 
years  about  this  work?" 


The  Lord's  Coming  101 

"Attending  church,  teaching  Sunday 
school  and  trying  to  do  some  good,"  was  the 
reply. 

"Have  you  won  any  souls,  have  you  done 
any  missionary  work?"  And  sadly  she  had 
to  reply,  "No." 

"Well,"  he  said,  "you  come  this  way. 
Jesus  is  receiving  His  friends  to-day,  to- 
morrow He  receives  His  servants." 

She  awakened  from  the  dream  to  believe 
in  the  near  coming  of  Christ,  and  to  Mr. 
Meminger's  great  joy,  as  well  as  that  of  her 
Lord,  this  woman  became  an  earnest  Chris- 
tian, and  is  to-day  laboring  in  Chicago  win- 
ning her  jewels  for  Christ. 

The  following  characteristic  address  was 
given  by  him  at  an  Alliance  Convention  sev- 
eral years  ago. 

"Jesus  is  coming!  He  promised  if  He 
went  away  He  would  return.  He  has  gone, 
and  there  can  be  no  doubt  but  that  He  will 
come  back.  Now  I  am  sorry  to  be  obliged 
to  say  that  I  know  some  persons  who  have, 
as  they  think,  received  the  Holy  Spirit  to 
criticise  and  cut  to  pieces  their  brethren 
who  believe  in  the  Lord's  coming  again. 
How  wrong  is  this  spirit !  Rather,  we  should 


102     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

be  kindly  affectioned  one  toward  another. 
But  I  am  to  speak  to-night  on  our  Lord's 
second  advent  and  readiness  for  HHs  appear- 
ing. A  preparation  is  needed  to  meet  Jesus 
in  peace  and  gladness.  Let  us  have  that 
coming  again  not  merely  as  intellectual 
knowledge,  but  as  part  of  ourselves. 

"Jesus  is  coming — do  you  believe  it?  The 
first  people  I  knew  who  came  to  me  speak- 
ing of  the  Lord's  coming  I  could  not  admire ; 
they  repelled  me  from  the  truth.  They  were 
full  of  untempered  zeal.  They  had  not  the 
Holy  Ghost.  And  so  they  killed  their  testi- 
mony with  their  lives.  Let  us  be  careful  we 
do  not  hinder  the  spread  of  truth  by  our 
manner  of  living.  I  was  prejudiced  by  them. 
We  should  so  speak  the  truth  as  to  melt  one 
another  down  into  love.  Kindness  and  pray- 
er should  ever  prevail. 

"Then  I  became  acquainted  with  some 
date-setters;  and  they  did  not  help  me  re- 
ceive the  Lord's  coming.  The  year  they 
named  for  this  mighty  event  went  by  and 
Jesus  did  not  come.  That  further  stumbled 
me.  The  Holy  Ghost,  the  Executive  of  the 
Godhead,  arranges  the  schedule  of  time ;  we 
can  no  more  do  it  than  the  ordinary  citizen 
can  arrange  the  train  time-table.  Confusion 


The  Lord's  Coming  103 

and  smash-up  would  result  from  our  running 
the  trains.  The  railway  official,  the  executive 
of  the  line,  makes  up  the  running  schedule. 
The  greatest  matter  of  all  is  readiness  for 
the  event  when  it  shall  come  off.  Are  you 
ready?  Are  you  ready?  A  person  not 
ready  for  Christ's  return  is  not  ready  to  live 
or  die. 

"  'Do  not  make  it  too  soon,'  some  say, 
'there  is  a  great  deal  to  be  done ;  much  to 
be  fixed  up;  many  things  to  be  arranged.' 
They  feel  themselves  held  in  captivity,  and 
they  do  not  want  the  Lord  to  come  and  find 
them  in  their  present  condition.  They  want 
time,  more  time,  to  free  themselves.  Hear 
them,  as  they  say:  'O  wretched  man  that 
I  am !  who  shall  deliver  me  from  this  body 
of  death.'  Beloved!  get  out  of  the  seventh 
chapter  of  Romans.  How  get  out?  Fall 
out.  Where  fall?  Into  the  eighth  chapter. 
What  does  that  say  ?  'Now' — not  in  the  res- 
urrection, nor  on  the  golden  streets  inside 
the  pearly  gates — 'no  condemnation!'  Who 
wants  to  continue  a  'wretched'  man,  when 
he  can  be  free?  I  do  not  want  to  live  with 
wretched  men  except  just  long  enough  to 
pray  for  them. 

"  'No     condemnation !' — not      an      entry 


104     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

against  us.  Nothing  charged  to  our  name. 
God  help  us  to  get  something  'now' ;  to  be 
undergirded  with  His  strength  and  overflow- 
ing with  the  Spirit.  Swing  out!  Oh,  our 
happiness  is  complete  with  not  a  charge  pre- 
ferred! Hallelujah!  Rejoice,  because  it  is 
all  fixed  up.  Jesus  did  it  on  Calvary  by  His 
precious  blood!  Man  can  put  color  into 
glass  that  will  neutralize  color  in  an  outside 
object.  So,  looked  at  by  God  through  the 
blood  of  Christ,  though  our  sins  have  been 
like  scarlet,  yet  repenting  and  believing  on 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  we  are  seen  as  white ! 

"Now  for  the  credit  side.  'Beloved !  now 
are  we  the  sons  of  God.'  When  ?  Now ! 
You  would  scarcely  believe  it  to  look  at 
some  people  who  pass  as  Christians.  So 
miserable!  Hark  to  their  lamentations!  Oh, 
get  filled  and  thrilled  now  with  the  mighty 
redemption !  May  the  Hjoly  Ghost  burn  it 
into  us  NOW  !  Tell  the  people  they  may  be- 
come free  through  faith.  Cleansed  and  filled 
with  the  Holy  Spirit  makes  one  ready  for 
the  Lord's  return.  Preaching  to  the  perish- 
ing, saving  the  hopeless,  is  a  heaven  for 
NOW. 

"  'We  know' — God  has  it  so  that  we  KNOW 
— 'that  when  Chris*  shall  appear  we  shall 


The  Lord's  Coming  105 

be  like  Him.'  Really,  I  cannot  understand 
why  those  who  love  Jesus  are  not  interested 
in  His  return,  when  it  is  promised  that  at 
His  return  we  shall  be  made  like  Him.  If 
relatives  took  no  interest  in  knowing  of  our 
coming,  and  failed  to  be  at  the  depot  to  meet 
us  when  we  arrived  from  a  distance,  we 
should  not  regard  them  as  very  warm 
friends.  Well,  when  Jesus  comes,  we  shall 
be  like  Him.  And  more  than  that,  we  shall 
have  a  crown — 'a  crown  of  righteousness, 
which  the  Lord  the  righteous  Judge  shall 
give  unto  us  at  that  day/ 

"But  there  is  another  side  to  this  subject, 
the  sinner's  side.  When  Jesus  comes  to 
the  world,  it  will  be  to  its  judgment.  And 
'as  it  was  in  the  days  of  Noah,  so  will  it  be 
at  the  coming  of  the  Son  of  man.  They  ate, 
they  drank,  they  married  and  gave  in  mar- 
riage, and  knew  not  until  the  flood  came  and 
took  them  all  away.'  Thus  will  it  be  with 
the  impenitent  when  Jesus  returns.  The 
flood  got  here  on  time — in  just  a  hundred 
and  twenty  years  from  the  time  it  was 
threatened.  So  will  Jesus  come  on  time; 
and  the  signs  show  that  the  time  is  nearly 
full. 

"Brethren  in  Christ,  let  us,  like  the  de- 


io6     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

tective,  locate  men,  run  them  down,  appre- 
hend them  for  Jesus.  Sent  by  the  Holy 
Ghost  will  we  not  drag  them  out  of  sin, 
wash  them  up,  and  presently  have  a  banquet 
in  the  air,  with  Jesus — all  royal,  His  breth- 
ren? 

"Oh,  I  am  delighting  in  the  thought  of 
Jesus'  coming  and  the  blessings  He  will 
bring  us !  I  am  just  revelling  in  it !  There 
is  royalty  in  every  one  of  us  who  has  been 
born  of  God,  and  the  day  of  the  second  ad- 
vent is  the  period  of  its  manifestation. 

"Are  you  ready?  Get  right  with  God  and 
man  this  night.  What  do  you  care  for  man's 
opinions  and  remarks  about  you?  A  prince 
is  not  disturbed  by  the  criticisms  and  sneers 
of  the  common  man.  He  knows,  with  his 
spending  alone,  he  could  buy  the  whole  out- 
fit of  the  critic.  To  be  ready,  ready  for  the 
Bridegroom  at  His  appearing  is  the  supreme 
concern  and  work  of  this  dying  age." 


CHAPTER  XI. 
MISSIONS. 

FROM  the  time  of  his  conversion  Wilbur 
Meminger  became  interested  in  foreign 
missions.  He  was  a  close  reader  of 
Bishop  Taylor's  works  on  street  preaching 
and  self-supporting  missions  in  India  and 
Africa,  and  of  sketches  of  his  work  in  papers 
published  for  that  purpose.  With  his  sympa- 
thy aroused  in  foreign  mission  work  he  nat- 
urally desired  to  help,  and  he  began  to  look 
for  a  source  from  which  to  get  funds  to  help 
the  good  work  along.  He  decided  to  inter- 
est the  members  of  his  Tuesday  evening 
class.  His  first  mission  box  was  a  small 
pasteboard  collar  box  from  his  store  which 
he  sealed,  and  every  Tuesday  night  he 
would  carry  this  little  box  under  his  arm 
to  the  class  and  place  it  upon  the  table.  The 
responses  were  immediate,  although  it  was 
designed  for  free-will  offerings  from  any 
who  desired  to  help  Mr.  Taylor  in  his  far 
off  missions.  It  was  not  long,  however,  un- 
til regular  contributions  found  their  way 
into  the  little  box,  which  was  opened  every 


io8     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

three  months  and  the  money  forwarded  to 
Bishop  Taylor.  Hundreds  of  dollars  soon 
found  their  way  into  the  good  work.  No 
class  closed  without  the  admonition  from 
Mr.  Meminger,  "Don't  forget  Bishop  Tay- 
lor's little  box." 

This  homely  box  was  later  displaced  by 
a  wooden  box  with  a  lock  and  key,  which 
was  used  until  Mr.  Meminger  resigned  as 
leader  to  take  up  the  active  work  of  the 
Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance  in 
Chicago. 

As  Superintendent  of  the  Tyrone  Branch 
of  the  Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance, 
the  subject  of  missions  was  ever  kept  be- 
fore the  meeting  and  the  members  soon  felt 
it  a  grand  privilege  to  give  to  this  cause. 
Subscriptions  were  taken  from  time  to  time 
for  home  and  foreign  missions,  from  $110 
for  the  first  year  until  it  increased  to  $550 
for  one  year.  Conventions  were  held  from 
time  to  time  in  the  various  churches,  which 
added  greatly  to  the  attendance  and  collec- 
tions for  missions. 

In  his  wider  field  work  be  hecame  better 
acquainted  with  many  of  the  missionaries, 
and  how  he  loved  them!  He  used  to  say, 
"I  would  take  off  my  hat  to  a  missionary 


Missions  109 

any  time,"  and  "I  would  ask  no  greater  glory 
than  to  be  found  on  the  mission  field  when 
the  Lord  conies."  It  was  a  joy  to  him  and 
his  wife  when  their  youngest  son  offered 
himself  for  the  foreign  field,  and  when  he 
was  suddenly,  in  an  accident,  taken  away 
by  death,  while  earning  the  money  which 
was  to  give  him  his  training,  they  immedi- 
ately planned  to  take  another  missionary  in 
his  memory  and  support  him.  This,  how- 
ever, was  not  settled  and  their  offerings 
were  given  instead  into  the  general  fund 
without  any  stipulation,  to  be  used  as  the 
Board  deemed  best. 

Uuring  Mr.  M;eminger's  latest  trips  it 
twice  fell  to  him  to  hold  memorial  services 
in  the  home  cities  of  two  of  the  missionaries 
who  had  died  on  the  field.  Hie  was  touring 
Ohio  when  word  came  from  the  Tibetan 
Border  that  Miss  Effie  Gregg  had  been 
called  home.  He  had  known  her  well  as 
had  also  Rev.  James  H.  Kirk  and  family. 
The  memorial  service  was  held  on  a  Sab- 
bath afternoon  when  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Kirk 
with  trembling  lips  spoke  of  her  pure  life 
and  the  blessing  she  had  been  to  them.  Mr. 
Meminger,  who  considered  it  a  high  honor 
to  be  called  home  from  the  mission  field, 


1 10     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

spoke  of  her  as  "early  crowned."  THere 
was  scarcely  a  dry  eye  in  the  place.  Need- 
less to  say  he  saw  an  opportunity  to  press 
home  some  heart  truths,  and  did  so  vigor- 
ously. The  missionary  offering  followed, 
doubling  the  amount  of  the  previous  year. 

Again,  in  the  Far  West,  at  Chehalis, 
Wash.,  came  the  news  of  the  home-going  of 
Alice  Yoder,  from  India,  and  in  the  memo- 
rial service  held  in  the  evening  Mr.  Mem- 
inger  preached  from  Miss  Yoder's  favorite 
text:  (John  x.  16)  "The  Other  Sheep."  A 
hush  of  the  Holy  Spirit  came  upon  the  large 
audience  that  had  gathered  from  six  miles 
around.  Sobs,  flowing  tears  and  smiles  min- 
gled, and  when  an  appeal  was  made  to  fill  up 
the  gap,  many  were  the  responses  from  the 
young  people.  Many  received  great  uplift- 
ing and  no  one  will  soon  forget  that  memo- 
rial service. 

And  the  missionaries  liked  to  travel  with 
"the  Little  Man  and  Woman  from  Chicago." 
Mr.  H'amill,  who  was  one  of  the  last  mis- 
sionaries to  travel  with  them  in  convention 
work,  writes  thus  from  China: 

"I  often  think  of  our  first  trip  together — 
that  Western  trip.  Can  we  ever  forget  it! 
There  are  many  things  that  bring  it  back  to 


Missions  in 

me.  What  a  help  you  and  Brother  Memin- 
ger  were  to  me  at  Calgary  when  my  tooth 
was  ulcerated.  I  shall  never  forget  the  first 
time  Brother  Meminger  laid  his  hands  on 
me.  The  power  came  down.  The  Lord  met 
us  that  afternoon.  It  was  then  that  you  and 
your  husband  sang: 

'They  are  all  on  Jesus.' 

I  should  like  to  hear  you  sing  it  again,  for 
it  was  such  a  blessing  to  me  that  afternoon. 

"Brother  Meminger  proved  to  be  such  a 
congenial  companion  on  that  Western  trip, 
as  well  as  at  the  summer  conventions.  He 
was  so  agreeable  and  considerate  that  one 
could  not  help  but  feel  free  with  him.  Then 
again,  I  enjoyed  his  company  on  the  plat- 
form for  he  was  intensely  interested  in  mis- 
sions. How  often  have  I  seen  him  smile  as 
I  have  been  speaking  on  China,  and  how  of- 
ten have  I  heard  him  give  that  rather  quiet 
but  very  emphatic  assent  of  'Yes,  yes.'  He 
encouraged  me  many,  many  times  as  I  made 
an  appeal  for  China  and  the  heathen  world 
at  large. 

"You  speak  of  the  little  feast  that  we  had 
in  your  room  two  nights  before  you  were  to 
have  left  New  York.  Well,  I  often  think  of 


1 12     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

it  too.  How  we  enjoyed  the  cake  and  fruit 
as  well  as  the  good  pot  of  coffee  that  you 
made.  I  remember,  too,  how  I  thought  that 
I  had  better  not  keep  you  up ;  but  Brother 
Meminger  seemed  to  want  me  to  stay.  I 
am  glad  now  that  I  stayed  and  had  such  a 
long  chat  with  him.  Nor  shall  I  forget  how 
he  slipped  five  dollars  into  my  hands  as  I 
said  good-night  to  him.  If  I  remember 
rightly,  he  said,  'This  will  help  you  get  back 
to  China.'  You  will  remember  that  he  was 
very  much  interested  in  my  getting  back  to 
China.  Then,  the  next  night  comes  back  to 
me,  and  I  think  of  how  I  said  good-bye  to 
him  down  at  the  Tabernacle  door  as  he  was 
on  his  way  to  the  open  air  meeting  at  the 
corner.  I  told  him  that  I  was  very  glad  that 
I  had  learned  to  know  him  and  to  love  him, 
and  he  responded  in  a  way  that  showed  me 
that  he  appreciated  what  I  had  said." 

How  delighted  he  was  to  send  in  his  re- 
ports of  the  progress  in  the  missionary  offer- 
ings, and  no  convention  was  to  him  a  suc- 
cess unless  it  found  practical  outlet  in  gifts 
for  foreign  mission  work. 


CHAPTER  XII. 
CHICAGO  WORK. 

IN  1907  Wilbur  Meminger  was  requested 
by  the  Board  of  the  Christian  and  Mis- 
sionary Alliance  to  take  up  the  local  work 
in  Chicago.  He  found  the  work  in  a  neglect- 
ed   condition   but    organized   a   number   of 
meetings  immediately.    Mrs.  T.  C.  Rounds, 
of  the  Chicago  Hebrew  Mission,  who  was 
in  close  touch  with  the  Alliance  work  in  Chi- 
cago, writes  thus : 

"As  I  look  back,  how  well  I  remember  the 
first  time  I  ever  saw  him.  The  work  in 
Chicago  had  gone  down,  down,  down  until 
there  was  only  a  little  handful  to  tell  the 
story  of  an  Alliance  amongst  us.  But  these 
faithful  few  were  praying  that  the  Lord 
would  revive  the  work  and  send  a  man  to 
build  it  up.  A  last  effort  was  made  and  an 
Alliance  Convention  was  the  result.  The 
second  day  of  the  convention  Doctor  Simp- 
son pointed  out  a  medium  sized  man  with 
large,  keen  black  eyes  and  a  face  that  betok- 
ened energy  and  life,  as  the  man  whom  they 
were  going  to  send  as  the  Superintendent  of 


1 14     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

the  Chicago  work.  He  said,  'I  believe  that 
he  is  just  the  man  for  the  place.'  He  came 
and  time  proved  that  not  only  was  he  the 
man  for  the  place,  but  the  place  was  just 
for  the  man,  for  in  it  'the  little  man  from 
Chicago/  as  he  used  afterwards  to  call  him- 
self, took  root  and  grew  and  expanded  un- 
til even  Chicago  grew  too  small  for  him. 

"The  field  was  a  hard  one.  The  people 
of  the  'Fourfold  Gospel'  were  scattered 
everywhere.  Doctor  Dowie  was  in  the  hey- 
day of  his  popularity  and  everything  'but 
God'  was  against  a  revival.  But  with  in- 
domitable energy  born  of  the  Holy  Ghost 
he  put  his  hand  to  the  plow  and  from  that 
day  never  looked  back. 

"He  began  meetings  in  the  Central  Bap- 
tist Church  on  Clark  St.,  near  Van  Buren, 
humanly  speaking  a  very  undesirable  dis- 
trict to  hold  popular  meetings.  But  as  he 
and  a  little  band  he  gathered  around  him  la- 
bored on  indefatigably  the  Lord  wrought 
and  soon  the  place  became  known  as  a  meet- 
ing place  of  God  with  His  people.  Here  sin- 
ners were  saved,  believers  sanctified  and 
multitudes  were  healed,  for  there  never  was 
a  service  that  the  altar  was  not  full  of  those 
seeking  the  Lord.  And  just  here  I  may  add 


Chicago  Work  115 

that  I  think  I  never  saw  anyone  more  su- 
premely happy  than  Mr.  Meminger  when  he 
could  get  an  altar  full  of  people,  and  those 
who  came  uniformly  got  what  they  were 
seeking  for,  for  he  patiently  labored  with 
each  one  until  the  light  came. 

"From  early  morn  till  late  at  night  outside 
of  this  weekly  meeting  he  with  his  wife,  af- 
ter she  came  to  Chicago,  were  constantly 
on  the  wing,  flying  from  one  part  of  the 
city  to  another,  visiting  the  sick,  the  suffer- 
ing, the  needy  and  the  dying,  and  as  a  result 
scores  were  snatched  from  the  hands  of 
death  in  answer  to  the  'prayer  of  faith'  that 
was  offered. 

"In  the  early  days  of  his  Chicago  experi- 
ence he  'endured  hardness  as  a  good  soldier 
of  Jesus  Christ,'  no  one  ever  suspecting  un- 
til it  was  all  over : — even  to  taking  'joyful- 
ly the  spoiling  of  his  goods,'  when  a  much- 
needed  new  overcoat  was  stolen  from  him — 
so  uncomplaining  was  his  spirit. 

"It  soon  became  apparent  that  there  must 
be  a  change  in  the  meeting  place  of  the  Al- 
liance. The  Lord  fixed  our  brother's  eyes 
and  heart  upon  Willard  Hall.  With  a  zeal 
that  was  untiring  he  followed  it  up  with  an 
active  faith  in  God  that  soon  made  others 


1 1 6     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

see  as  he,  the  advisability  of  the  change,  and 
the  mighty  God  back  of  finances  ready  to 
meet  the  needs  of  those  who  trust  in  Him. 
From  the  beginning  it  was  a  success,  and 
many  hands  now  joined  his,  for  there  is 
'nothing  so  successful  as  success.'  Besides 
the  Willard  Hall  meeting,  others  were  or- 
ganized and  held  in  different  parts  of  the 
city,  and  all  was  going  well. 

"It  was  with  the  deepest  regret  our  Alli- 
ance chiefs  informed  us  that  they  had  select- 
ed our  brother  for  a  wider  field — as  one  of 
their  Field  Secretaries.  We  parted  with  him 
most  reluctantly.  But  he  was  ever  most 
warmly  welcomed  back  whenever  he  and 
his  wife,  to  whom  he  was  so  devotedly  at- 
tached, found  it  convenient  to  make  a  visit 
to  Chicago. 

"There  is  much  to  say  about  the  man 
whom  'none  knew  but  to  love.'  He  was  an 
orator.  His  power  of  imagination  and  de- 
scription were  great.  The  subjects  of  his 
discourse  stood  out  as  living  realities,  and 
he  would  hold  in  breathless  silence  his  audi- 
ences. Many,  or  a  I  may  say,  none,  will  ever 
forget  the  portraiture  of  his  own  life,  which 
he  frequently  gave  in  such  graphic,  startling 
words,  as  to  indelibly  impress  the  saving 


Chicago  Work  117 

power  of  the  blood  to  cleanse  and  keep 
cleansing.  Hearts  touched  in  these  living  pic- 
tures and  many  souls  taking  courage,  yield- 
ed to  God  and  were  'born  again/  and  their 
lives  were  transformed  by  the  renewing  of 
their  minds. 

"None  ever  doubted  that  he  was  a  man  of 
prayer.  Whatever  success  he  had  he  at- 
tributed it  to  Him,  who  hears  and  answers 
prayer,  believing  with  his  whole  heart  that 
whatever  was  done,  God  must  do  it,  and 
did  do  it. 

"I  could  not  close  this  without  referring  to 
what  he  was  to  the  Chicago  Hebrew  Mis- 
sion. He  soon  became  a  member  of  the 
Board  of  Trustees  and  so  continued  during 
the  years  of  his  residence  in  the  city.  We 
ever  found  him  a  good  adviser  and  a  strong 
help  in  prayer.  He  loved  Israel  and  always 
did  everything  in  his  power  to  excite  inter- 
est in  God's  ancient  people,  and  no  conven- 
tion that  he  held  in  Chicago  was  complete 
unless  Israel  and  the  Mission  were  repre- 
sented. The  Gospel  must  be  preached  'to 
the  Jew  first'  was  uppermost  in  his  mind, 
and  without  doubt  he  owed  much  success  to 
this. 

"Time  fails  me  to  speak  of  many  other 


1 1 8     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

virtues,  but  with  this  I  close.  He  was  a 
Spirit-filled  man,  the  graces  of  the  Spirit  as 
well  as  the  gifts  abounded  in  his  life  and 
made  him  what  he  was,  a  most  lovable  as 
well  as  lovely  man.  May  the  Lord  make  us 
imitators  of  him  as  he  imitated  Christ." 

After  taking  up  the  work  in  Chicago  for 
a  time,  he  had  temporary  quarters  in  a  flat 
with  two  of  his  boys.  One  night  the  in- 
mates of  twenty-one  flats  were  chloro- 
formed and  robbed,  among  them  Mr.  Miem- 
inger.  He  lost  his  watch  and  clothing,  and 
in  fact,  everything  he  owned.  Twice  he  was 
held  up  in  the  streets  of  Chicago;  once  by 
two  women,  for  the  purpose  of  robbery,  but 
as  he  was  a  preacher  they  let  him  go.  Again, 
two  young  men  passing  him  pointed  two 
revolvers  at  his  face,  crying,  "Hands  up." 
Up  went  his  hands  and  in  one  of  them  a 
Bible.  Seeing  the  B'ible  one  said  to  the 
other,  "Don't  hurt  him,  he's  a  preacher." 
Then  and  there  he  preached  Christ  to  them. 

Space  will  not  permit  us  to  give  many  de- 
tails of  his  work  while  in  Chicago.  He 
worked  hand  in  hand  with  the  missions  of 
the  slums.  He  and  his  wife  were  constant- 
ly visiting  the  poor  and  sinful,  and  in  a  sin- 
gle year  1,500  visits  were  made  by  them, 


Chicago  Work  119 

and  many  were  saved  and  healed.  There 
was  no  cut  and  dried  method  employed;  no 
side  way  of  meeting  the  people.  New  meth- 
ods must  be  constantly  used  to  meet  the 
varying  needs. 

On  one  occasion  with  his  wife  and  Mrs. 
Trumbull  he  visited  the  slums. 

"A  long  street  car  ride  brought  us  to  a 
part  of  Chicago  where  rents  were  low  and 
everything  else  was  low.  Up  the  long  flight 
of  stairs  we  climbed.  After  long,  and  loud 
knocking  we  entered  the  larger  of  two 
rooms;  the  woman,  the  mother,  the  forsak- 
en wife,  was  surrounded  by  children,  that  at 
first  sight  appeared  to  be  of  all  ages,  but 
seven  in  all,  their  scanty  clothing  torn  and 
dirty.  Some  of  the  children  were  sick,  all  of 
them  cross,  mother  discouraged,  hair  un- 
combed, face,  hands  and  arms  unclean,  cloth- 
ing unclean,  untidy.  Dirt  everywhere.  Not 
a  clean  chair  or  table ;  walls,  windows,  floors, 
all  dirty.  Stove  rusty  and  out  of  repair, 
the  black  night  of  despair  was  closing  in 
upon  them.  Quickly  the  two  sisters  found 
soap  and  towel  and  began  to  wash  the  lit- 
tle children ;  the  older  ones  took  the  hint 
and  washed  and  combed  themselves.  The 
mother  refused  to  make  any  change  in  her 


120     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

appearance  at  first,  but  when  some  whole- 
some food  was  untied  and  the  table  set,  the 
eyes  of  all  fixed  upon  her,  she  yielded,  made 
herself  as  presentable  as  possible.  We  all 
gathered  round  the  table,  and  as  the  writer 
asked  the  Lord's  blessing  upon  it  all,  the 
children  wondered.  After  the  meal,  the 
dishes  washed  and  put  away,  we  all  felt  an 
increased  warmth  about  our  hearts.  We 
loved  each  other.  The  mother  broke  down 
completely,  in  tears,  told  of  her  sickness, 
how  it  prevented  her  from  attending  to  her 
ordinary  duties.  We  told  her  how  the  Lord 
had  heard  prayer  and  healed  our  bodies, 
etc.,  and  that  we  believed  the  Lord  would 
heal  her.  At  last  she  called  for  the  elders, 
anointing  service,  something  new  in  that 
home.  After  the  prayer  of  dedication  and 
separation  the  oil  was  applied  as  the  prayer 
was  closing,  'and  the  Lord  shall  raise  him 
up,  and  if  he  hath  committed  sins  they  shall 
be  forgiven.'  The  mother  exclaimed,  'Oh, 
the  merciful  God  has  touched  my  poor,  sin- 
ful body.  He  has  sent  you  to  my  poor 
home.'  A  few  months  later  we  paid  another 
visit.  Stairs  clean,  light  tap  at  the  door 
and  a  bright-faced  girl  of  ten  opens  it,  and 
with  a  smile,  welcomes  us.  The  floors  are 


Chicago  Work  121 

clean,  the  stove  is  blacked,  the  windows 
bright;  the  mother,  with  only  a  calico  robe, 
is  now  a  princess.  No  pictures  yet  upon  the 
wall  until  Sister  Trumbull  fastened  upon 
the  wall,  opposite  the  window,  a  beautiful 
motto,  'Jesus  Christ  the  same  yesterday,  to- 
day and  forever/  " 

He  was  ever  zealous  for  the  work  of  the 
Master  and  an  inspiration  to  all  Christran 
workers.  More  than  one  of  the  Chicago 
workers  have  felt  it  a  privilege  to  meet  and 
know  him  intimately.  His  consistent  life 
helped  many. 

"I  have  been  with  him,"  says  one,  "when 
called  to  visit  the  sick  both  in  the  hospi- 
tals and  homes  where  patients  were  consid- 
ered past  recovery,  but  were  willing  to  trust 
God  for  all  He  had  for  them  for  both  soul 
and  body.  I  have  seen  such  anointed  and 
prayed  with  and  raised  up  in  answer  to  the 
prayer  of  faith,  become  active  and  useful 
members  of  their  homes  and  communities 
and  ready  to  testify  to  what  God  had  done 
for  them  by  His  saving  power. 

"I  recall  many  instances  where  his  pres- 
ence among  the  sick  was  a  comfort  and 
a  benediction,  and  not  only  the  sick  but  the 
sinner  was  made  to  rejoice  by  being  brought 


122     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

out  of  darkness  into  light  and  life  through 
his  zeal  and  untiring  life  for  the  Mlaster." 

A  unique  feature  of  Mr.  Meminger's  work 
in  Chicago  was  a  prayer  meeting  held  in  the 
parlor  of  one  of  the  workers  which  was  con- 
ducted for  about  nine  years,  and  all  the  hard 
cases  were  brought  to  this  meeting  for 
prayer.  It  was  called  "The  Emergency 
Prayer  Meeting"  and  there  were  results  in 
the  salvation  of  souls  and  the  healing  of 
bodies.  One  woman  was  healed  of  cancer; 
another  of  blindness;  the  sight  of  one  eye 
was  gone  and  with  the  other  she  was  able  to 
distinguish  only  white  from  black.  This 
woman  is  now  reading  and  praising  God. 
This  meeting  has  developed  into  a  mission 
in  the  saloon  district,  and  is  being  greatly 
blessed  of  God. 

His  field  soon  began  to  widen  both  to 
the  South  and  to  the  Northwest,  and  was 
finally  called  to  the  field  work  of  the  Alli- 
ance. 


CHAPTER  XIII. 
THE  FIELD  WORK. 

TH|E  field  work  of  the  Christian  and  Mis- 
sionary Alliance  took  Mr.   Meminger 
all    over    the    continent  and  through 
Canada.     His  first  trip  to  the  Pacific  Coast 
was  made  in  1900.    The  train  was  wrecked 
in  the  Rock  Mountains,  but  they  were  pre- 
served without  injury.     Mr  »Meminger,  in 
writing  East  about  this  incident,  said: 

"Most  of  the  journey  was  made  in  a 
blinding  snowstorm,  sleet  and  hail.  After 
more  than  ten  days  and  nights  in  the  cars ; 
darting  through  tunnels,  climbing  mountain 
sides,  speeding  over  vast  plains  and  prairies, 
with  now  and  then  a  village,  or  a  gaunt 
herd  of  cattle  and  sometimes  a  pack  of 
wolves  startled  by  the  engine  whistle.  Af- 
ter the  awful  grade  had  been  climbed  and 
the  summit  reached,  our  engine  gave  a 
mighty  blast  of  triumph  which  echoed 
through  the  pines  and  crags.  Just  then  our 
engine  found  something  wrong  with  the 
air-brake  and  was  backing  into  a  side  track 


124     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

when  the  second  section  of  our  train  came 
crashing  into  us  knocking  some  of  the  cars 
into  kindling  wood.  The  one  next  to  us  was 
completely  destroyed.  Our  car,  which  was 
a  sleeper,  was  hurled  into  the  air,  and  turned 
over,  stopping  less  than  six  inches  from  the 
edge  of  a  precipice  hundreds  of  feet  deep. 
Of  course,  our  car  became  a  scene  of  great 
confusion.  Wife  and  I  hurried  out  only 
partly  clothed,  the  storm  was  still  raging, 
and  the  thermometer  at  35  degrees  below 
zero.  We  were  then  packed  into  a  smoking 
car  for  hours  until  the  wreck  was  cleared 
away.  We  praised  the  Lord  that  we  were 
not  injured  in  any  way.  The  two  trains 
were  made  into  one,  and  with  two  mighty 
engines  we  made  the  trip  down  in  safety, 
still  able  to  admire  the  grand  scenery  about 
us,  the  snow-capped  peaks,  the  dark  blue 
ranges  and  fresh  green  of  the  gorges.  At 
last  we  steamed  into  Spokane  twenty-one 
hours  behind  time." 

But  their  trials  were  not  over.  After 
spending  ten  days  in  Spokane,  they  passed 
on  to  Seattle  and  from  there  to  Tacoma  and 
on  to  Portland,  Oregon. 

Little  has  been  said  of  their  home  life  in  Ty- 
rone. While  still  in  business,  Mr.  Memin- 


The  Field  Work  125 

ger  met  and  married  Laura  Stewart  in  1876, 
the  daughter  of  the  Rev.  J.  D.  Stewart,  of 
whom  mention  has  already  been  made.  Three 
children  were  born  to  them,  William,  Paul 
and  Charles,  in  "the  little  brown  house"  where 
they  first  took  up  housekeeping.  It  was  a 
small  house  which  they  were  buying,  and  it 
soon  became  too  small  for  the  family  and  a 
large  room  was  added.  Here  in  this  room  as 
soon  as  it  was  built,  weekly  meetings  were 
started  in  which  sinners  were  saved,  believers 
sanctified,  and  sick  ones  healed.  Thus  he 
ever  combined  religion  with  his  daily  life. 
He  felt  that  the  house  truly  belonged  to  the 
Lord  and  they  never  anticipated  any  possible 
disaster.  When  the  house  was  nearly  paid 
for,  Mr.  Meminger  obliged  a  good  brother  in 
the  church  by  endorsing  a  note  for  him,  and 
when  the  note  became  due,  it  was  Wilbur 
Meminger  who  had  to  see  his  "little  brown 
house"  go  to  meet  it.  It  seemed  hard  to  him 
and  it  was  difficult,  indeed,  to  forgive  the 
brother  who  had  so  wronged  them.  He  was 
conscious,  however,  that  his  heart  was  wrong 
and  so  he  prayed  earnestly  about  it  and  asked 
for  grace  to  forgive.  This  was  given  him.  He 
wanted  this  brother,  however,  to  know  that  he 
had  forgiven  him  his  injury,  and  he,  therefore, 


126     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

besought  the  Lord  further  to  give  him  the  op- 
portunity to  do  a  kindness  to  this  man.  This 
also  was  granted,  and  Wilbur  Meminger  re- 
mained a  happy  man  although  his  home  was 
gone.  But  the  story  is  not  finished. 

He  never  broached  this  incident  to  his  fa- 
ther-in-law, the  Rev.  J.  D.  Stewart,  but  in 
some  way  it  came  into  his  knowledge,  and  he, 
unknown  to  his  daughter  and  son-in-law, 
bought  the  house  when  it  was  sold  and  later 
gave  it  into  their  possession. 

Wilbur  Meminger  believed  in  family  reli- 
gion and  one  of  his  favorite  passages  of  Scrip- 
ture was  "Believe  on  the  Lord  Jesus  Christ 
and  thou  shalt  be  saved  and  thy  house."  His 
business  relations  and  church  duties,  therefore, 
gave  only  a  limited  amount  of  time  in  the 
home,  but  here  as  elsewhere  he  was  not  hard 
to  please,  and  exhibited  always  a  grateful 
spirit,  feeling  ever  that  God  was  showering 
upon  him  more  than  he  deserved.  In  a  pre- 
vious chapter  we  have  briefly  referred  to  the 
fact  that  the  youngest  son,  Charles,  was  in- 
stantly taken  home  in  an  accident.  He  had 
felt  the  call  of  God  to  go  to  China  and  had  set 
to  work  to  earn  the  money  which  was  to  edu- 
cate him  and  take  him  to  the  field.  During  the 
first  trip  of  his  parents  to  the  West — the  trip 


The  Field  Work  127 

already  referred  to  above — while  they  were 
in  service  at  Tacoma,  Washington,  Charles 
was  instantly  called  home  by  a  railroad  acci- 
dent. Word  did  not  reach  his  parents  until 
they  arrived  at  Portland,  Oregon. 

Rev.  J.  H.  Allen  of  Long  Beach,  Cal.,  super- 
intendent of  the  Berea  Mission,  Portland, 
Oregon,  where  Alliance  meetings  were  then 
being  held,  writes  thus : 

"When  Brother  Meminger  stepped  into  the 
pulpit  for  the  first  service,  we  felt  intuitively 
that  he  was  one  of  God's  noblemen  and  that 
he  knew  the  voice  of  the  Holy  Spirit.  The 
full  assurance  of  this  was  given  not  only  to 
us  personally  but  to  the  entire  congregation 
in  a  most  marked  way  on  that  eventful  Sun- 
day, that  will  never  be  forgotten  by  many  of 
that  congregation. 

"That  morning  a  telegram  came  addressed 
to  Brother  Meminger  in  my  care  and  I  slipped 
it  in  my  pocket  charging  my  mind  carefully 
that  I  should  not  forget  to  deliver  it  to  him, 
but  I  came  away  from  the  morning  service 
with  it  still  in  my  pocket.  At  this  service  the 
text  Mr.  Meminger  used  was  from  Ecclesi- 
astes  vii.  vss.  2  and  3 — "It  is  better  to  go  to 
the  house  of  mourning  than  to  go  to  the  house 


128     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

of  feasting;  for  that  is  the  end  of  all  men; 
and  the  living  will  lay  it  to  his  heart,"  etc. 

"That  evening  I  hurried  to  the  church  feel- 
ing embarrassed  and  humiliated  that  I  had  for- 
gotten to  deliver  the  telegram.  As  quickly  as 
I  could  I  handed  the  message  to  Brother 
Meminger  at  the  same  time  apologizing  for 
my  carelessness.  He  wanted  to  consult  me 
for  a  moment  and  so  passed  the  telegram  to 
his  wife  to  open  and  read.  When  Brother 
Meminger  had  finished  speaking  with  me  and 
I  was  passing  on  toward  the  rostrum,  I 
stopped  suddenly  on  hearing  a  moan  and  look- 
ed back  in  time  to  see  Mrs.  Meminger  hand 
the  telegram  to  her  husband  as  she  exclaimed, 
'Oh,  my  baby  boy!'  That  telegram  told  of 
the  calamity  which  had  overtaken  their  son. 
In  a  few  minutes  they  were  enabled  to  enter 
the  pulpit  and  sing  the  hymn  of  victory. 

"Later,  before  he  began  preaching,  he  told 
the  people  of  the  great  sorrow  that  had  come 
to  them;  but  he  added,  'I  told  you  this  morn- 
ing that  it  was  better  to  go  to  the  house  of 
mourning  than  to  the  house  of  feasting,  and 
God  knew  that  I  meant  it.  He  has  sent  the 
test  and  I  mean  it  yet.'  " 

Mr.  Meminger  in  reporting  the  convention 


WILBUR    MEMINGER S    YOUNGEST    GRANDCHILD. 


The  Field  Work  129 

work  at  this  time  referred  very  briefly  to  this 
time  of  testing  and  trial. 

"Here  we  received  the  severest  shock  of 
all  our  lives.  Telegram  only  read:  'Charles 
was  killed  to-day  on  the  railroad.'  The  blow 
staggered  us  for  a  time.  The  little  woman 
reeled  and  fell,  but  in  answer  to  prayer  God 
gave  her  back  to  us.  'Praise  God  from  whom 
all  blessings  flow/  and  together  we  sang  that 
Sunday  night  (as  never  before),  just  before 
I  gave  the  message : 

'I've  yielded  to  God  and  I'm  saved  every  hour, 
I've  yielded  to  God  and  I  feel  His  sweet  power. 
I've  trusted  His  promises,  not  one  has  failed 
Of  all  His  good  Word,  though  the  tempter  assailed.' 

"The  congregation  were  unable  longer  to 
control  their  emotion.  Some  sobbed  aloud, 
others  were  bathed  in  tears  of  joy.  We  all 
had  the  victory  and  they  with  hearts  full  of 
tenderest  sympathy  for  us,  had  been  in  prayer 
for  our  complete  trust  in  the  dear  Lord.  It 
was  their  victory  and  ours.  But  our  testing 
was  not  over  yet;  a  decision  must  now  be 
made  between  Love — and  duty. 

"Shall  we  leave  the  work,  return  home  and 
once  more  look  upon  the  face  of  our  baby  boy 
before  they  lift  up  the  sod  and  place  his  body 
under?  Father-love  and  mother-love  said  go 


130     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

at  once.  The  Spirit  led  on  down  the  Coast. 
Decision  was  made  in  favor  of  duty  and  in  a 
moment  we  were  enabled  to  smile  through 
our  tears.  Convention  deepened  and  heighten- 
ed the  interest  in  missions,  the  princely  offer- 
ing made  at  close  of  the  Convention  was 
proof." 

Rev.  W.  A.  Cramer,  now  in  charge  of  the 
Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance  at  Cleve- 
land, was  then  in  Chicago  and  writing  of  this 
incident  says : 

"The  Christian  fortitude  and  abundant 
grace  given  our  dear  Brother  Meminger  and 
his  wife  at  the  time  of  the  tragic  killing  of 
their  son,  by  being  run  down  in  the  railroad 
yards  by  an  engine,  always  impressed  me  as 
a  most  wonderful  display  of  the  keeping  pow- 
er of  the  presence  of  Jesus.  While  waiting 
in  Chicago  for  word  from  them,  from  the  Pa- 
cific Coast,  where  they  were  holding  meetings, 
expecting  them  to  come  on  to  attend  the  fu- 
neral, we  received  this  message  instead:  'Do 
all  you  can  for  the  precious  dead,  we  will  con- 
tinue to  hold  up  Jesus  to  the  living  and  finish 
our  work  here.'  I  had  known  Charles  but  a 
short  time  and  had  come  to  regard  him  very 
highly  and  had  but  the  day  before  his  death 
talked  with  him  concerning  his  eternal  inter- 


The  Field  Work  131 

ests.  He  was  desirous  to  labor  that  his  father 
might  continue  in  the  Lord's  work,  and  he 
himself  had  become  greatly  interested  in  the 
thought  of  some  day  going  to  China.  We  had 
talked  somewhat  concerning  my  personal  ex- 
periences in  the  Congo  field.  We  all  felt  him 
to  have  been  a  missionary  at  heart  which  is 
counted  to  his  reward  by  Him  who  reads  all 
hearts. 

"I  and  his  uncle,  Mr.  Stewart,  accompa- 
nied the  remains  to  Tyrone,  Pa.,  where  inter- 
ment was  made  after  services  held  in  the 
home  of  his  grandfather,  Rev.  J.  D.  Stewart. 

"The  memory  of  this  incident  will  always 
bear  about  it  the  sweet  savor  of  lives  wholly 
committed  to  the  service  of  the  Master  and 
who  stop  not  in  their  course,  but  move  on  and 
trust  all  to  Him.  This  mantle  of  heavenly 
peace  fulness  and  soul  calm  seemed  not  to 
have  departed  from  our  Sister  Meminger, 
when  I  met  her  as  she  was  following  the  re- 
mains of  her  precious  husband  from  the  Gos- 
pel Tabernacle  but  a  short  time  since.  When, 
forgetful  of  her  own  sorrow,  she  said,  'Dear 
Mr.  Cramer,  I  have  been  praying  so  much  for. 
you  and  the  missionaries.'  Thus:  'The 
Peace  of  God  which  passeth  all  understand- 
ing/" 


CHAPTER  XIV, 
FIELD  WORK  (Continued). 

The  second  trip  was  made  to  Southern 
California  in  1902.  Of  this  visit  Rev.  J. 
Hudson  Ballard,  Principal  of  the  Wilson 
Memorial  Academy,  Nyack,  writes: 

"Well  do  I  remember  the  time  when 
Brother  Meminger  visited  us  in  Southern 
California  for  a  series  of  special  conven- 
tions. It  was  in  the  winter  of  1902-03.  I 
had  been  but  a  few  months  in  the  sunny 
land  and  had  found  a  great  many  scattered 
friends  of  the  full  gospel,  but  very  little 
organization,  chiefly  because  there  were  no 
standards  raised  around  which  the  people 
could  rally.  It  fell  to  Brother  Meminger 
and  myself  to  visit  the  long-neglected 
branches  and  revive  the  hearts  of  the  friends 
at  each  place  in  a  short  convention.  When 
it  rains  in  California  it  generally  rains  and 
does  nothing  else.  I  well  remember  partic- 
ularly that  many  of  those  convention  days 
were  days  of  continuous  downpour.  To 
the  Southern  Californians  this  wasivery  wel- 
come because  the  rain  drops  there  are  liter- 
ally 'gold  drops/  but  to  Easterners  the  rain 
was  not  so  significant  of  prosperity  and 
cheerfulness. 


The  Field  Work  133 

"Nevertheless,  in  spite  of  the  trying  cli- 
matic conditions  and  the  scattered  and  fre- 
quently disheartening  character  of  the  full 
gospel  bands,  Mr.  M'eminger  pushed  on 
from  place  to  place  with  that  zeal  and  vi- 
vacity which  were  so  delightfully  character- 
istic of  him.  It  was  chiefly  his  buoyant 
cheerfulness  and  his  firm  faith  in  the  Lord 
that  carried  those  introductory  meetings 
through  to  a  series  of  successful  climaxes. 
Physical  inconveniences  and  weather  irreg- 
ularities were  far  beneath  him.  He  steamed 
on  just  the  same,  full  of  love  and  vigor  in 
the  service  of  his  Master. 

"His  messages  then,  as  I  have  frequently 
observed  in  many  other  places,  were  true 
to  the  great  though  often-neglected  stand- 
ards of  the  gospel.  H'e  was  particularly 
noted  for  passing  by  some  of  the  finer  and 
rather  pretty  distinctions  which  belong  to 
the  philosophy  of  the  higher  Christian  life — 
often  without  any  practical  profit — and  in- 
sisted upon  the  great  foundation  truths.  He 
was  brave  enough  to  preach  to  the  people 
what  they  were  supposed  to  have  learned 
in  their  childhood,  but  what  in  fact  in  many 
instances  they  had  never  learned  in  their 
hearts.  He  dwelt  on  the  love  of  God  and 


134     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

the  judgment  that  was  coming,  on  the  re- 
deeming power  of  Christ  and  the  perfect 
cleansing  through  the  blood,  on  the  inspira- 
tion and  final  authority  of  the  Word  of  God 
and  the  continual  and  mighty  inworking  of 
the  Holy  Spirit.  He  found  in  such  great 
universal  truths  as  these  sufficient  scope  for 
his  vigorous  thinking  and  his  forceful 
preaching.  He  did  not  stop  to  quibble  with 
the  saints  over  the  splitting  of  a  hair,  but 
seemed  to  be  impelled  constantly  by  a  bur- 
dening love  for  lost  souls.  Although  he 
preached  the  full  gospel  in  all  its  upper 
reaches  and  directed  the  gaze  of  the  saints 
forward  to  the  coming  of  the  Lord,  he  never 
during  one  service  forgot  the  condition  of 
those  who  needed  the  first  application  of 
the  gospel  in  its  regenerating  power  and 
who  needed  it  that  very  hour. 

"Brother  Meminger's  cheerful  view  of 
things  was  more  than  human  optimism.  It 
was  a  divine  insight  into  the  often  hidden 
beauties  of  seemingly  coarse  and  distressing 
circumstances.  He  was  unable  to  see  the 
difficulties  and  repeatedly  surprised  us  by 
the  encouraging  things  he  saw  in  the  com- 
monest incidents.  His  reports  to  the  East- 
ern friends  were  full  of  victory,  with  no 


The  Field  Work  135 

mention  of  what  to  many  appeared  to  be  the 
sign  of  failure. 

"In  all  these  things  and  in  many  others 
he  left  a  deep  impression  upon  those  who 
listened  to  him  and  those  who  were  privi- 
leged to  labor  along  with  him  to  the  effect 
that  this  man  was  down  to  the  depths  of  his 
earnest  soul  a  man  of  God,  who  would  be 
willing  to  do  what  a  few  years  later  he  actu- 
ally did  do — wear  himself  out  and  give  him- 
self up  for  the  sake  of  the  souls  of  men." 

The  last  trip  to  the  Coast  was  made  in 
1908  and  one  that  cannot  soon  be  forgotten. 

In  September,  1908,  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Mfemin- 
ger  started  for  a  long  tour  covering  a  num- 
ber of  points  in  the  South  and  Far  West. 
Mr.  Meminger  preached  in  the  Gospel  Tab- 
ernacle on  Sunday  evening  and  at  the  close 
of  the  service,  Mr.  Josephus  L.  Pulis  prayed, 
especially  committing  Mjr.  and  Mrs.  Mem- 
inger to  the  care  of  the  Lord  on  their  pros- 
pective journey.  In  the  midst  of  his  prayer 
he  broke  down  and  cried,  and  many  joined 
their  tears  with  his.  A  brother  went  to  Mr. 
Pulis  later  and  asked  him  why  he  cried,  to 
which  he  responded,  "I  cannot  tell  you,  but 
the  Lord  knows  why  I  cried  and  the  Lord 
laid  that  burden  on  me." 


136     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

The  following  day  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Memin- 
ger  started  for  the  South,  stopping  all  night 
at  Dansville,  Va.  They  took  the  first  train 
out  in  the  morning  which  happened  to  be  a 
fast  express.  An  extra  fare  was  charged  on 
this  train  of  three  dollars.  This  reduced 
their  pocket-book  to  such  an  extent  that 
they  were  unable  to  purchase  meals  on  the 
train  and  all  the  way  to  Atlanta  not  a  stop 
was  made  at  which  they  could  even  pur- 
chase a  sandwich.  Eight  minutes  after  leav- 
ing the  station  of  Spartansburg,  S.  C.,  a 
heavy  crash  was  heard  and  the  bridge  over 
which  they  had  just  passed  was  completely 
washed  away.  The  train  went  on  to  Green- 
ville, N.  C.,  at  which  point  the  train  was 
sidetracked  and  remained  for  the  night.  An- 
other bridge  just  ahead  had  been  washed 
away  with  the  exception  of  the  ties  and  the 
rails.  The  only  way  to  cross  was  by  placing 
planks  over  what  remained  of  the  bridge 
and  having  the  passengers  go  one  by  one 
to  the  other  side.  Even  this  was  at  consid- 
erable risk,  but  the  passage  was  made  in 
safety.  Still  later  there  was  another  bridge 
to  cross.  It  had  to  be  repaired,  however, 
before  a  train  would  dare  to  pass  over  on 
it.  Men  did  this  by  standing  waist  deep  in 


The  Field  Work  137 

water  while  the  passenger  train  waited  four 
hours.  At  length  Atlanta  was  reached  af- 
ter a  fast  of  forty-one  hours  and  after  a  most 
tedious  and  tiresome  journey.  Arriving  at 
Atlanta  Mr.  Meminger  hurried  off  to  the 
meeting  and  on  his  arrival  in  the  place 
the  friends  knowing  of  some  of  the  difficul- 
ties of  the  way,  arose,  cheered  and  waved 
their  handkerchiefs.  He  understood  then 
the  reason  for  Mr.  Pulis'  prayer  and  the 
burden  which  seemed  to  overwhelm  him 
that  Sunday  night. 

But  this  was  not  the  end  of  that  memora- 
ble journey.  Their  steps  then  lay  in  a  west- 
erly direction,  stopping  next  at  St.  Paul 
and  Minneapolis  for  meetings.  On  they  sped 
to  the  West,  passing  through  prairie  fires. 
After  a  very  blessed  service  on  the  Coast 
they  returned  to  the  East  by  way  of  Canada 
and  in  the  Canadian  Rockies  were  again 
halted  in  their  journey  by  heavy  snow  falls 
through  which  the  train  could  not  pass.  Fi- 
nally, the  engine  stopped ;  the  wires  were 
kept  busy  and  soon  from  the  nearest  city  a 
large  number  of  laborers,  principally  Japan- 
ese, arrived  to  dig  the  train  out,  but  the 
snow  drifted  in  faster  than  they  could  dig 
and  it  was  not  long  before  the  train  was 


138     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

completely  covered  with  the  snow.  The  pas- 
sengers could  do  nothing  but  wait,  and  here 
they  remained  from  Tuesday  until  Friday. 
The  gas  gave  out.  The  conductor  hung  his 
lantern  in  the  middle  of  the  car  and  put  a 
candle  at  each  end.  The  water  gave  out  and 
snow  had  to  be  melted  for  the  emergency. 
The  well-supplied  dining  car,  however,  kept 
the  passengers  fed  in  the  meantime.  Some 
photographs  were  taken  of  the  train  at  this 
time  and  one  gives  an  excellent  view  of  the 
train  being  dug  out.  The  man  on  the  right 
hand  side  is  standing  on  top  of  the  train, 
and  when  the  train  was  finally  dug  out  in- 
stead of  being  taken  along  on  their  journey, 
because  of  heavier  drifts  still  ahead,  they 
were  compelled  to  go  back.  They  remained 
in  this  town  of  Maple  Creek  until  Saturday 
noon,  missing  two  conventions  which  had 
been  planned,  but  arriving  in  Winnipeg  in 
time  for  the  meetings  there.  Thus  they  were 
wont  to  say  in  referring  to  this  trip  they 
went  through  floods,  through  fires  and 
through  snow,  but  were  brought  out  in  per- 
fect safety. 

Several  evangelistic  tours  were  conducted 
in  the  South  in  company  with  Rev.  R.  A. 
Forrest.  He  writes : 


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The  Field  Work  139 

"Among  my  earliest  recollections  of  Bro. 
Meminger  is  of  our  sitting  together  in  an 
old  deserted  barn  in  South  Florida  talking 
of  the  Lord  and  His  work.  The  writer  was 
then  just  being  initiated  into  the  Alliance 
work  and  Brother  Meminger  was  at  that 
time  superintendent  of  the  Southern  Dis- 
trict, having  come  to  Florida  for  the 
winter  conventions.  After  talking  a  while 
we  went  to  our  knees  on  a  pile  of  corn  fod- 
der, and  I  can  remember  yet  the  thrill  of  the 
presence  of  God,  as  he  prayed  Kim  to  bless 
and  use  us  in  the  work,  and  help  us  to  be 
His  best.  Many  times  since  we  have  remem- 
bered that  prayer  meeting,  and  have  felt 
stronger  for  the  memory. 

"It  was  not  long  until  God  called  Brother 
Meminger  to  a  larger  and  wider  sphere  of 
usefulness,  and  by  a  strange  leading  of 
Providence  we  were  trying  to  care  for  the 
Southern  District;  and  it  was  then  that  we 
had  the  privilege  upon  four  or  five  occasions 
of  having  Brother  Meminger  with  us  for 
conventions  and  series  of  conventions.  It 
has  often  been  said,  and  very  truly,  that 
there  is  no  better  place  to  get  acquainted 
with  one  than  travelling  in  convention  work. 
Every  opportunity  is  here  afforded  to  dis- 


140     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

play  whatever  selfishness,  impatience,  or  ir- 
ritability there  may  be  lurking  in  one's 
heart;  and  yet  after  being  with  Brother 
Meminger  for  months  at  a  time,  in  meetings 
almost  constantly,  we  can  truthfully  say 
that  he  was  always  the  same  gentle,  even- 
tempered  man,  and  a  true  representative  of 
the  Christ  whom  he  loved  and  served. 

"One  of  Brother  Meminger's  distinguishing 
characteristics  was  his  marked  individuality. 
It  was  a  very  foolish  man  who  tried  to  imi- 
tate him  successfully,  for  one  never  knew 
what  he  would  do  next.  Strong,  buoyant, 
energetic,  hopeful,  and  deeply  spiritual,  he 
won  hearts  everywhere  he  went  throughout 
the  South,  and  wherever  we  go  since  his 
death  we  find  loving  hearts  who  bear  grate- 
ful testimony  to  great  blessing  derived  from 
his  ministry. 

"In  all  his  meetings  and  preaching  he  was 
true  to  the  truth  God  had  revealed  to  Him, 
preaching  powerfully  and  fearlessly  without 
compromise  the  message  God  gave  him,  and 
it  is  not  surprising  therefore  that  his  minis- 
try has  born  'much  fruit  that  shall  remain.' 

"On  his  last  trip  through  the  South  just  a 
few  weeks  prior  to  his  death,  God  wonder- 
fully used  him,  especially  at  Durham,  N.  C, 


The  Field  Work  141 

in  the  Gospel  Tabernacle.  Souls  were  saved, 
believers  sanctified,  and  the  church  received 
a  wonderful  uplift  and  blessing  as  a  result 
of  his  meeting's. 

"On  the  night  of  his  'abundant  entrance/ 
as  he  went  down  the  stairs  to  the  street 
meeting  where  his  body  fell,  he  called  back 
to  the  writer  saying  that  as  soon  as  the 
street  meeting  was  over  he  wanted  to  have  a 
conversation  about  the  Durham  meetings. 
We  are  awaiting  with  joyful  anticipation  the 
time  when  we  will  not  only  have  that  con- 
versation, but  will  be  able  to  talk  over  all 
the  conflicts  and  triumphs  we  have  been 
privileged  to  share  in  the  Southland. 

"We  miss  his  glad  'Hallelujah !'  and  the 
inspiration  of  his  earthly  presence,  but  we 
are  sure  he  is  now  making  the  courts  of 
heaven  ring  with  shouts  of  praise  to  the 
Lamb  that  are  far  louder  and  more  triumph- 
ant than  the  loudest  shout  while  here. 

"The  sympathy,  love  and  prayers  of  thou- 
sands of  Southern  friends  are  extended  to  his 
bereaved  wife  in  this  greatest  of  earthly  sor- 
rows, that  God  may  sustain  her,  and  bright- 
en her  last  years  of  loneliness  with  the  com- 
forting thought  of  her  love,  care,  and  devo- 
tion that  helped  make  him  the  man  he  was, 


142     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

and  the  glorious  hope  of  going  up  with  him 
'to  meet  the  Lord  in  the  air.' 

"What  a  glorious  sweeping  entrance  he 
had  into  glory !  His  passing  away  was  like 
the  going  down  of  the  sun  on  a  beautiful 
summer  evening  as  it  seems  to  dip  beneath 
the  Western  hills  in  the  full  strength  of  its 
effulgent  glory,  leaving  a  great  halo  of  light 
in  the  heavens  long  after  it  is  gone.  The 
memory  of  this  strong,  brave,  true  life  will 
remain  in  blessing  among  men  until  Jesus 
comes." 

Ulysses  Lewis,  of  Atlanta,  Georgia,  who 
was  much  with  him  in  the  work  there,  sends 
the  following  lines: 

"Dear  Sister  Meminger: 

"Your  letter  was  received  some  days  ago 
while  I  was  engrossed  in  many  matters  that 
did  not  allow  me  time  to  reply.  Since  the 
death  of  Brother  Meminger  I  have  thought 
of  you  many  times,  and  heard  with  pleasure 
how  God's  grace  sustained  you  through  the 
trying  ordeal  of  his  sudden  departure.  I 
know  you  miss  him.  You  two  were  insepa- 
rable for  years.  It  will  be  hard  for  you  to 


The  Field  Work  143 

get  used  to  his  absence.  His  sudden  death 
changed  all  your  plans  without  notice.  We 
miss  him,  too,  and  shall  miss  him  more  at 
the  time  of  our  conventions  in  Atlanta.  He 
was  greatly  beloved  here.  No  preacher  was 
more  acceptable  to  our  people  than  he,  and 
God  used  him  here  to  benefit  many  lives  who 
will  never  forget  him  and  his  wonderful 
preaching.  It  was  a  strange  providence 
which  took  him  at  that  time.  He  was  need- 
ed by  the  Alliance  more  than  at  any  time 
before,  and  was  doing  a  great  work.  Every 
part  of  the  field  felt  the  shock  of  his  depar- 
ture, and  his  loss  to  the  work  cannot  be 
estimated.  But  God  knew  best  and  gave 
him  a  glorious  death  on  the  field  in  full  har- 
ness, which  is  to  be  envied.  I  have  heard 
many  say  that  no  doubt  he  would  have  chos- 
en to  go  that  way. 

"The  news  of  his  death  came  to  us  in  a 
telegram  which  also  announced  the  danger- 
ous illness  of  my  daughter  Elizabeth,  in 
China,  with  typhoid  fever.  I  at  once  prayed. 

"Mir.  Meminger  was  no  ordinary  man. 
His  style  of  preaching  was  all  his  own — dif- 
ferent from  any  I  ever  heard — and  was  very 
effective  and  always  interesting,  brilliant 


144     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

and  helpful.  H'e  helped  many  a  soul  that  no 
one  else  could  touch ;  and  the  Lord  gave 
him  souls  for  his  hire.  H'e  kept  in  touch 
with  us  in  Atlanta  and  wrote  some  of  us 
regularly.  His  published  articles  were  also 
read  with  deep  interest.  In  my  extensive 
traveling  over  the  Alliance  work,  I  found 
him  loved  everywhere,  and  universal  sorrow 
at  his  death. 

"He  was  always  bright  and  cheerful.  His 
sunny  disposition  lifted  people  while  he 
pointed  them  to  God  with  quick  power  from 
above,  and  with  the  soundest  doctrine  and 
convincing  persuasion.  Believers  were 
strengthened,  backsliders  drawn  and  sinners 
convicted  and  converted.  It  was  my  privi- 
lege to  pray  for  him  constantly  ever  since 
I  have  known  him,  and  to  love  him  like  a 
brother.  My  children  all  loved  him.  He 
used  to  take  my  two  little  boys  on  excur- 
sions to  the  park  here,  treating  them  to  pea- 
nuts and  candy  and  boating  on  the  lake. 
They  thought  there  was  no  one  like  him, 
and  they  were  right  about  that. 

"We  have  all  a  warm  place  in  our  hearts 
and  homes  for  you.  When  it  pleases  the 
Lord  to  send  you  this  way  we  shall  be  glad 


The  Field  Work  145 

to  see  you.    Mjy  family  all  well.    Your  friend 
and  brother, 

"ULYSSES  LEWIS." 

And  the  Rev.  E.  E.  Johnson,  of  Durham, 
N.  C,  in  whose  field  Mr.  Meminger  labored 
so  earnestly,  bringing  many  souls  to  the 
Lord,  writes: 

"My  earliest  remembrance  of  Mr.  Memin- 
ger was  that  of  a  little  man  with  a  burning 
passion  for  souls. 

"He  seemed  to  me  to  be  all  aflame  with 
the  'passion  fire  of  love  Divine.' 

"The  intervening  years  which  have 
brought  to  me  the  coveted  privilege  of  a 
more  personal  friendship  and  fellowship 
with  him  in  the  Lord's  work  have  only 
served  to  strengthen  my  first  impressions, 
and  even  now  it  is  impossible  to  contem- 
plate his  love  and  zeal  without  feeling  a 
thrill  of  heavenly  fire,  and  the  quickening 
of  the  desire,  if  not  the  determination,  to 
emulate  the  example  of  his  life. 

"To  him  it  was  marvelous  that  Christians 
were  not  all  alive  and  always  alive  to  the 
work  of  winning  souls. 

"Loyal  to  Christ  he  was  always  eager  to 
lay  some  trophy  at  the  Master's  feet.  He 


146     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

counted  'not  his  life  dear'  unto  himself  in  his 
passionate  yearning  to  save  the  lost.  He 
traveled  from  Maine  to  Florida,  from  the 
Atlantic  coast  to  the  Pacific,  resting  not  in 
summer  or  in  winter,  in  the  one  intense, 
eager  pursuit  of  lost  souls ;  and  wherever 
you  found  him  there  was  the  same  burning 
zeal  speaking  out  in  His  looks  and  his 
words.  He  was  always  moving  in  his  work 
at  a  pace  much  nearer  to  a  run  than  to  a 
walk. 

"In  September,  1909,  he  came  to  Durham, 
his  second  visit. 

"In  all  the  years  that  I  have  known  Mr. 
Meminger  and  heard  him  preach  the  good 
tidings  of  full  salvation,  I  have  never  heard 
him  preach  with  such  Holy  Ghost  zeal  and 
power  as  was  manifest  from  the  very  begin- 
ning of  his  stay  among  us.  As  a  friend,  who 
upon  hearing  of  his  death  and  recalling  his 
meetings  at  Durham  as  his  last  regular 
series  of  meetings,  said,  'He  seemed  to  be 
preaching  as  if  it  were  his  very  last/ 

"Appeal  after  appeal  with  earnest  exhor- 
tation came  from  his  lips  for  twelve  nights ; 
and  how  shall  we  describe  the  closing  serv- 
ice on  the  last  Sunday  of  the  meetings.  He 
spoke  from  the  text  in  I.  Samuel  xx.  3, 


WILBUR   MEMJXGERS  GRANDCHILDREN. 


The  Field  Work  147 

'There  is  but  a  step  between  me  and  death.' 
We  all  were  made  to  feel  that  there  was  but 
a  thin  veil  hanging  between  us  and  the  great 
Eternity.  So  deeply  moved  were  the  hearts 
of  the  unsaved,  that  a  gentle  invitation  was 
all  that  was  needed  to  fill  the  altar  with  ear- 
nest, seeking  souls. 

"The  last  scene  of  this  service  can  only 
be  pictured  mentally.  Words  fail  to  de- 
scribe the  picture  as  those  who  had  found 
Christ  during  the  meetings  came  with  words 
of  praise  and  thanksgiving  for  blessings  re- 
ceived. How  touching  was  the  final  scene 
as  one  after  another  of  the  'new  born  babes' 
would  grasp  our  brother's  hand  and  with 
tears  in  their  eyes  bid  him  farewell  as  chil- 
dren taking  leave  of  a  very  dear  earthly 
parent. 

"Dear  faithful  man  of  God !  The  ruling 
passion  was  strong  in  death.  As  he  had  spent 
himself  in  the  service  of  the  Lord,  there  was 
a  solemn  fitness  in  the  last  act  of  his  life  as 
he  stood  proclaiming  Christ  to  the  lost,  and 
thus  fell  asleep." 


CHAPTER  XV. 
CALLED  HOME. 

"Not  I,  but  Christ,  be  honored,  loved,  exalted, 
Not  I,  but  Christ,  to  wipe  the  falling  tear, 

Not  I,  but  Christ,  to  lift  the  weary  burden, 
Not  I,  but  Christ,  to  hush  away  all  fear. 

"O  to  be  saved  from  myself,  dear  Lord, 

O  to  be  lost  in  Thee, 
O  that  it  might  be  no  more  I, 

But  Christ  that  lives  in  me." 

WE  attended  the  New  York  Convention 
of  the  Christian  and  Missionary  Alli- 
ance in  October,  1909,  and  were  to 
leave  on  the  morning  of  the  7th  for  New 
York  State  and  the  Far  West.  Mr.  Memin- 
ger  was  asked  on  the  evening  of  the  6th  by 
the  Young  People  of  the  Gospel  Tabernacle 
to  speak  at  the  street  service  held  on  the 
corner  of  Forty-fourth  Street  and  Eighth 
Avenue.  I  stood  by  him  while  the  serv- 
ice was  going  on,  and,  as  I  always  did,  pray- 
ed very  earnestly  for  him  as  he  was  speaking. 
He  gave  his  message  closing  with  the  words, 
"Amen,  my  heart  is  breaking  for  souls."  He 
stepped  back  and  physically  seemed  to  be  all 


Called  Home  149 

right.  I  was  tired  from  standing  so  long  and 
not  feeling  very  well  and  so  turned  to  him  say- 
ing, "I  will  go  into  the  Tract  Room  and  sit 
down  until  you  come."  He  answered:  "All 
right,  I  will  be  right  along."  I  walked  into 
the  Tract  Room ;  but  did  not  sit  down,  but  in- 
stead walked  to  the  door  in  a  somewhat  rest- 
less spirit.  I  am  sure  now  that  it  was  the 
Lord  that  led  me  away  from  the  meeting.  The 
street  meeting  broke  up  and  a  number  of  the 
people  came  into  the  Tabernacle  door  and 
one  lady,  a  member  of  the  congregation,  as 
she  came  along  was  crying.  I  went  up  to  her 
asking,  "What  is  the  matter,  what  is  wrong?" 
"Oh,"  she  said  with  uplifted  hands,  "your 
dear,  good  husband  has  fallen  to  the  ground." 
I  thought,  "it  is  all  over,  if  he  has  fallen,"  and 
I  ran  to  the  corner  as  fast  as  I  could,  but 
found  that  he  had  been  carried  into  the  Alli- 
ance House.  I  found  him  lying  on  the  floor 
speechless,  but  not  quite  gone.  I  prayed  that 
God  would  let  him  speak  once  more  to  me, 
but  there  was  no  response.  I  said,  "Wilbur, 
do  you  know  I  am  with  you?  If  so,  can  you 
breathe  a  sigh  of  relief?"  He  breathed  once 
and  was  gone.  I  believe  the  Lord  spared  him 
until  I  reached  him. 


1 50     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

Words  cannot  express  the  heart  break.  I 
thought  it  would  crush  me  to  death  too;  but 
God  held  me  very  still  in  His  mighty  arms.  It 
was  the  darkest  night  of  my  life,  but  He  has 
taught  me  to  say,  "Thy  will  be  done."  Then 
came  an  awful  struggle  as  I  began  to  realize 
that  my  husband  was  really  gone. 

Kind  friends  were  all  around  me  and  about 
four  o'clock  in  the  morning  the  Spirit  of  God 
took  hold  of  me  and  led  me  to  pray  in  the 
Holy  Ghost.  It  was  there  in  prayer  that  I  got 
away  from  myself,  got  away  from  my  dear 
husband,  got  away  from  everything  and  got 
right  into  the  very  secret  of  His  presence.  It 
was  there  where  God  gave  me  the  victory.  He 
brought  many  dear  ones  to  my  remembrance 
and  I  prayed  for  them — for  those  in  whose 
homes  we  had  been  and  others.  Miss 
McFedries,  who  was  with  me,  said,  "Now, 
Mrs.  Meminger,  you  have  prayed  for  two 
hours,  you  have  been  around  the  world  and 
back  again.  Now  I  believe  the  Lord  has  some- 
thing to  say  to  you.  I  would  lie  down  and 
keep  still  and  let  the  Lord  speak."  I  said, 
"Miss  McFedries,  all  I  want  is  to  have  a  vi- 
sion of  Jesus.  You  pray  that  the  Lord  will 
give  me  this  vision."  Miss  McFedries  prayed 
and  such  a  prayer  I  never  heard  from  anyone 


Called  Home  151 

before.  Finally  all  was  quiet — she  had  ceased 
praying.  Suddenly  Mr.  Meminger  appeared 
in  front  of  me.  He  was  clothed  in  a  beauti- 
ful robe  and  at  the  same  time'  I  saw  a  beauti- 
ful mound.  It  seemed  to  be  so  beautiful,  so 
pure,  so  transparent.  My  attention  was  drawn 
to  it.  I  wondered  what  it  was  when  I  saw 
Mr.  Meminger  stoop  down  and  pick  something 
off  this  mound  until  his  arms  became  filled. 
He  started  away  from  the  mound  and  it  seem- 
ed that  every  step  of  the  way  opened  up  so 
beautiful  and  glorious.  I  wondered  where 
he  was  going  when  suddenly  like  a  flash  Jesus 
appeared — the  King,  so  wonderful,  so  beauti- 
ful, words  cannot  express.  And  I  saw  Mr. 
Meminger  lay  these  trophies  at  Jesus'  feet  and 
I  realized  at  once  that  they  were  jewels,  souls 
that  he  had  won  for  the  Master.  But  that 
was  not  all.  He  returned  to  the  mound  and 
again  filled  his  arms  with  these  trophies,  and 
it  seemed  as  if  the  more  he  took  away  still 
higher  the  mound  grew.  And  once  again  he 
laid  the  jewels  at  the  feet  of  the  Master.  He 
bowed  down  before  the  Master  who  laid  His 
hands  on  his  head  and  said,  "Well  done,  thou 
good  and  faithful  servant ;  thou  hast  been  faith- 
ful over  a  few  things  I  will  make  thee  ruler 
over  many;  enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  the 


152     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

Lord."  Then  I  said  to  Miss  McFedries,  "Not 
only  has  the  Holy  Spirit  given  me  a  vision  of 
Jesus,  but  He  has  let  me  see  my  dear  husband 
carrying  souls  and  laying  them  at  Jesus'  feet." 
She  said,  "It  was  just  like  Jesus  to  roll  the 
clouds  away  and  give  you  such  a  beautiful 
vision." 

A  few  minutes  later  it  seemed  to  me  as 
though  the  Lord  was  going  to  take  me  too.  I 
was  perfectly  calm.  I  got  up,  told  my  sister- 
in-law,  who  was  also  staying  with  me,  every- 
thing concerning  my  children  and  all,  for  I 
really  thought  that  I  was  going. 

Miss  McFedries  said,  "No,  no  you  are  not 
going,  the  Lord  is  not  through  with  you." 
But  why  do  I  feel  this  way?  I  realized  then 
that  God  wanted  me  to  be  willing  to  go  or  stay, 
and  I  said,  as  never  before,  and  from  the  bot- 
tom of  my  heart — "Thy  will  be  done,  I  am  per- 
fectly willing  to  go,  and  sweet  it  would  be  to 
meet  my  dear  husband  at  the  early  morning 
hour ;  but  I  am  perfectly  willing  to  stay  a  little 
longer  to  perhaps  finish  some  work  the  Lord 
would  have  me  do." 

I  praise  God  for  such  wonderful  victory  and 
such  a  sweet  vision  of  Jesus.  I  praise  God  I 
have  learned  the  blessed  secret  of  abiding  in 
His  presence,  hidden  with  Christ.  I  am  so 


Called  Home  153 

glad  Heaven  is  not  far  away.  Our  dear  ones 
are  very  near.  The  veil  seems  very  thin.  I 
miss  my  dear  companion  at  every  turn.  The 
tears  come  without  bidding,  but  it  is  good  to 
cry.  It  relieves  the  heart.  Jesus  wept  at  the 
grave  of  His  friends. 

I  have  said  that  we  were  about  to  leave  on 
the  morrow  for  New  York  State.  It  was  to 
(^p  convention  work  with  Rev.  E.  J.  Richards, 
superintendent  of  the  New  York  State  work. 
The  following  letter  from  Mr.  Richards  is  an 
evidence  that  the  saving  grace  of  the  Lord 
Jesus  was  made  manifest  in  the  death  of  Mr. 
Meminger  as  well  as  in  his  life. 

"Schenectady,  N.  Y. 
"My  dear  Sister  Meminger: — 

"How  delighted  I  was  when  Dr.  Simpson 
wrote  me  that  Bro.  Meminger  had  been  as- 
signed to  New  York  State  for  convention 
work.  The  memory  of  our  campaign  together 
two  years  before  is  still  very  precious  in  my 
heart,  and  I  was  delighted  at  the  thought  of 
having  you  both  with  us  again.  The  people 
over  the  State  felt  likewise,  and  several  in  re- 
plying to  my  letters  giving  them  the  names  of 
speakers,  and  the  dates  for  their  convention, 
spoke  of  how  glad  they  were  to  have  Bro. 
Meminger  East  again.  When  I  received  the 


154     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

telegram  that  he  was  gone,  I  felt  stunned  at 
first.  I  could  hardly  realize  it.  I  was  in  Hor- 
nell  expecting  you  both  to  arrive  on  the  train 
in  the  next  few  hours  when  the  telegram  was 
handed  me.  After  the  first  shock  was  over, 
and  I  really  began  to  grasp  the  thing,  I  confess 
frankly  that  I  did  not  grieve.  You  remem- 
ber Jesus  said  to  His  disciples  when  they  were 
grieving  over  his  departure,  "If  ye  loved  me 
ye  would  rejoice,  because  I  go  to  my  Father." 
As  the  time  came  for  the  evening  service  and 
Miss  Gummoe  arrived  and  brought  us  word  as 
to  the  particulars  of  his  home-going,  our  hearts 
were  melted.  I  could  not  preach  that  night,  so 
instead  of  attempting  to  preach,  I  tried  to 
paint  three  pictures  before  the  people.  The 
first  one  showed  the  scene  in  the  W.C.T.U. 
rooms  at  Corning,  just  two  years  before  and 
Bro.  Meminger  pouring  out  his  heart  in  a  call 
to  the  unsaved,  and  how  at  the  close  of  his  ad- 
dress, it  seemed  as  if  God  gave  him  an  instant 
vision  of  the  doom  of  the  lost,  and  with  a  cry 
of,  "My  God,  an  open  Hell"  that  startled 
everybody  in  the  room,  he  dropped  to  the  floor 
in  a  torrent  of  tears  and  volley  of  groans.  I 
tried  to  picture  how  the  little  woman  that 
stood  by  him  in  his  work  pulled  his  head  up 
into  her  lap,  and  how  for  full  twenty  minutes 


Called  Home  155 

knelt  there  and  groaned  and  prayed  for  lost 
souls. 

"The  second  scene  was  Rocky  Springs  Con- 
vention of  1909,  as  he  stood  on  the  stage  of 
the  large  theatre,  with  easily  one  thousand  peo- 
ple looking  up  into  his  face,  and  he  took  his 
text  (I  think  it  was  the  last  one  I  ever  heard 
him  preach  from),  "As  the  Lord  liveth,  and  as 
thy  soul  liveth,  there  is  but  a  step  between  thy 
soul  and  death,"  and  as  he  punctuated  his  ser- 
mon with  the  story  of  a  man  of  his  acquaint- 
ance, who,  without  a  second's  warning  had 
been  ushered  into  eternity,  we  never  will  for- 
get the  sense  of  awe  that  swept  down  upon 
the  congregation.  Then  I  tried  to  draw  a  pic- 
ture of  the  scene  on  8th  avenue  and  the  circle 
of  sin-marked  faces  as  Bro.  Meminger  stood 
there  pleading  with  sinners  to  turn  to  the  liv- 
ing God,  closing  his  message  with  a  more  than 
usual  heart-cry,  stepped  aside,  and  in  an  in- 
stant was  in  the  presence  of  the  King.  With- 
out any  wavering,  without  any  long-drawn  out 
illness,  but  in  the  harness,  pulling  hard  for 
the  salvation  of  souls,  and  the  Glory  of  God, 
he  fell  headlong  on  toward  Glory. 

"I  will  never  forget  how  the  presence  of 
God  settled  upon  the  meeting  and  three  souls 
came  quickly  forward  and  wept  their  way  to 


1 56     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

the  feet  of  Jesus.  We  are  so  glad  that  while 
God  honored  Bro.  Meminger's  ministry  in  the 
salvation  of  souls,  that  he  also  honored  his 
death  in  the  same.  While  we  are  glad  for  him, 
our  hearts  beat  in  sympathy  for  you.  We  know 
this  is  the  hard  part,  and  yet  we  are  sure  that 
our  God  will  prove  himself  sufficient,  and  that 
by  His  grace,  you  will  fill  your  place  and  do 
your  work  as  faithfully  as  your  husband  did 
his. 

"Assuring  you  of  our  Christian  love  and 
sympathy,  I  am 

Most  prayerfully  yours, 
"E.  J.  RICHARDS." 

Little  did  he  think  on  that  memorable  night 
of  October  6th,  1909,  as  he  was  speaking  to 
a  street  audience,  among  whom  were  a  goodly 
number  of  laboring  men,  about  making  bricks 
without  straw,  that  these  were  his  last  words 
on  earth  to  a  dying  world.  Little  did  he  think 
that  his  work  was  ended.  His  relation  to 
family,  friends,  Alliance  and  other  duties  must 
now  shift  from  the  earthly  to  the  heavenly. 
He  could  say  with  Paul,  "I  am  now  ready  to 
be  offered,  the  time  of  my  departure  is  at 
hand,"  and  he  immediately  stepped  behind  the 
curtain  and  closed  it  after  him.  His  voice  is 
no  more  heard  in  the  street,  in  the  hall,  in  the 


Called  Home  157 

convention.  His  smile  radiant  with  the  joy 
of  the  Lord  and  that  has  cheered  so  many 
hearts,  has  gone  with  him.  He  is  silenced  by 
the  last  enemy — Death;  but  I  still  hear  his 
voice  echo  in  the  language  of  Job,  "For  I 
know  that  my  Redeemer  liveth  and  that  He 
shall  stand  at  the  latter  day  on  the  earth,  and 
though  in  my  skin  worms  destroy  this  body, 
yet  in  my  flesh  shall  I  see  God."  Henceforth 
let  us  not  think  of  him  in  the  grasp  of  the 
grave,  but  as 

"Forever  with  the  Lord ! 

Father,  it  is  Thy  will, 
The  promise  of  that  faithful  word 

E'en  here  to  me  fulfill. 

"So  when  my  latest  breath 

Shall  rend  the  vail  in  twain, 
By  death  I  shall  escape  from  death, 

And  life  eternal  gain." 


CHAPTER  XVI. 
MEMORIAL  SERVICES. 

MORE  than  a  thousand  persons  gath- 
ered in  the  Gospel  Tabernacle  at  noon 
on  Friday,  October  8th,  for  the  memo- 
rial service  in  connection  with  the  funeral 
of  the  late  Wilbur  F.  Meminger.  Appropri- 
ate Scripture  selections  were  read  by  Prin- 
cipal Stevens,  of  Nyack,  following  the  open- 
ing hymn,  "Am  I  a  soldier  of  the  Cross?" 
After  prayer  by  Rev.  F.  E.  Marsh  a  solo 
was  sung  by  Mrs.  Mumford,  of  Philadelphia, 
"Not  Now,  but  in  the  Coming  Years." 

Mr.  Simpson  then  gave  the  following  ap- 
preciation : 

"  'And  he  cried,  My  father,  my  father,  the 
chariots  of  Israel  and  the  horsemen  thereof. 
And  he  saw  him  no  more.  And  he  said, 
Where  is  the  Lord  God  of  Elijah?' 

"Elisha  had  just  witnessed  the  passing  of 
his  master  in  a  cloud  of  glory  and  a  chariot 
of  flame.  It  was  the  fitting  close  of  a  splen- 
did life  that  to  the  younger  prophet's  mind 
suggested  the  figure  of  the  chariots  and 


Memorial  Services  159 

horsemen  of  a  mighty  battalion  of  cavalry 
and  artillery.  So  Elijah  had  swept  through 
his  brief  and  dramatic  career  and  so  the 
close  had  fittingly  come  in  a  blaze  of  glory. 

"In  a  very  real,  though  of  course,  a  hum- 
bler way,  the  glorified  spirit,  whose  passing 
from  our  midst  we  mourn  to-day,  lived  his 
great  and  noble  life,  and  the  fitting  close 
was  not  unlike  the  dramatic  career  that  pre- 
ceded it.  Though  we  may  not  have  seen  the 
heavenly  messengers  we  cannot  question 
that  the  chariots  of  the  Lord  were  there  to 
convey  that  departing  spirit  to  stand  before 
the  King.  Had  he  been  permitted  to  choose 
the  circumstances  of  his  departure  it  is  not 
hard  to  believe,  as  one  has  already  said,  that 
he  would  have  wished  no  other  or  greater 
honor  than  to  die  in  harness  and  pass  in  a 
moment  from  the  field  of  battle  to  the  feet 
of  his  Lord. 

"None  of  us  who  knew  him  well  could  fail 
to  note  the  dramatic  touch  in  all  our  broth- 
er's life  and  ministry.  Converted  in  a  mo- 
ment from  a  life  of  sin  as  by  a  bolt  from 
heaven  while  his  saintly  father  was  spend- 
ing the  night  in  prayer  for  his  erring  son. 
his  whole  life  and  ministry  were  passed  on 
an  unusual  and  always  supernatural  plane. 


160     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

Probably  he  never  gave  an  address  in  his 
life  without  startling  at  some  period  in  his 
message  the  most  passive  of  his  hearers  with 
a  shout  that  was  sufficient  to  wake  the  dead. 
He  was  always  expecting  God  to  do  great 
and  mighty  things.  After  his  own  salvation 
and  healing  through  the  mighty  power  of 
God,  nothing  seemed  impossible  to  his 
faith.  He  had  a  passion  for  souls.  Every 
service  which  he  conducted  had  as  its  goal 
the  getting  of  somebody  from  sin  to  Christ. 
One  of  his  latest  appointments,  from  which 
he  came  directly  to  this  convention,  was  in 
the  city  of  Durham,  N.  C,  and  he  wrote  in 
glowing  words  of  the  triumphs  of  God's 
grace  in  the  salvation  of  the  crowds  of 
young  people  which  came  from  night  to 
night  to  hear  and  believe.  And  every  few 
sentences  were  interspersed  with  notes  of 
exclamation  and  punctuation  not  found  in 
the  text  books.  His  reports  of  his  campaigns 
read  like  the  bulletins  of  a  conquering  gen- 
eral sweeping  over  victorious  battle  fields. 
He  seldom  paused  even  to  put  in  the  verbs, 
but  dashed  off  a  series  of  triumphant  ejacu- 
lations and  field  notes  that  looked  like  a  plan 
of  battle.  No  service  was  too  arduous  for 
him  if  anybody  needed  to  be  helped.  While 


Memorial  Services  161 

in  charge  of  our  work  in  the  City  of  Chica- 
go he  was  constantly  on  'foot  visiting  the 
sick  and  suffering  in  every  part  of  that  wide 
and  scattered  city,  and  ready  at  any  hour  of 
the  day  and  night  for  the  call  of  duty.  His 
last  night  on  earth,  while  attending  the  con- 
vention here,  was  largely  spent  in  minister- 
ing at  the  bedside  of  a  suffering  saint  and 
praying  her  through.  He  was  a  real  sol- 
dier of  Christ,  intensely  loyal  to  his  colors 
and  his  cause,  and  prompt  in  obedience  to 
the  orders  of  his  Commander.  The  last 
morning  of  his  life  he  spent  three-quarters 
of  an  hour  with  the  writer  asking  and  re- 
ceiving instructions  for  the  extended  cam- 
paign on  which  he  was  just  starting  out  for 
the  next  seven  or  eight  months  in  the  State 
of  New  York  and  the  Northwest.  He  was 
always  waiting  for  orders  and  ready  implic- 
itly to  follow  them.  No  word  of  criticism 
or  complaint  ever  passed  his  lips.  If  there 
were  trials,  hardships,  self-denials,  only  the 
Master  heard  the  story.  With  his  devoted 
wife,  who  was  in  the  fullest  sense  that  the 
words  could  mean  his  helpmate,  he  has  trav- 
elled in  the  service  of  the  Alliance  over  ev- 
ery portion  of  the  United  States  and  Cana- 


162     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

da  and  everywhere  his  memory  is  blessed 
and  his  fruit  remains. 

"The  last  scene  in  his  dramatic  life  is  al- 
ready familiar  to  us.  About  to  depart  on  the 
morrow  for  a  long  campaign  of  more  than 
half  a  year,  he  had  gone  out  in  front  of  the 
Gospel  Tabernacle  to  take  part  in  the  street 
service  which  always  precedes  the  evening 
meeting,  and  to  give  what  proved  to  be  his 
last  message  on  earth  to  the  people  he  loved. 
He  had  supplied  the  pulpit  of  the  Gospel 
Tabernacle  for  two  summers,  and  was  re- 
garded by  them  as  almost  one  of  their  pas- 
tors. With  unusual  unction  and  power  he 
appealed  to  the  crowd  before  him  and 
preached  unto  them  repentance  toward  God 
and  faith  toward  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.  He 
had  scarcely  finished  when  he  was  seen  to 
fall  forward  on  the  pavement.  He  was 
quickly  carried  into  the  Alliance  House  and 
two  physicians  sent  for;  but  in  a  few  mo- 
ments, and  even  before  they  arrived,  his 
spirit  had  passed  to  be  with  Christ,  and  his 
beloved  wife  and  the  great  congregation  that 
was  gathering  in  the  Tabernacle  were  reel- 
ing from  the  awful  shock  of  this  sudden 
blow.  It  seemed  indeed  like  the  sudden 
passing  of  a  chariot  of  fire. 


Memorial  Services  163 

"One  moment  here, 

The  next  beyond  the  stars." 

"No  language  can  express  our  sense  of 
loss  in  the  passing  of  our. beloved  Brother 
Meminger.  His  spirit  will  always  shine  in 
our  memory  and  affection  and  in  glorious 
light  side  by  side  with  John  Cookman, 
David  Lelacheur  and  Henry  Wilson,  the 
most  gifted  and  lamented  of  the  honor  roll 
of  the  Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance. 
His  beloved  wife  has  had  a  great  share  in 
the  blessing  of  his  fruitful  life.  In  modest 
silence  and  womanly  love  and  loyalty  she 
has  suffered  and  labored  by  his  side  and  been 
the  inspiration  of  his  noblest  achievements. 
How  tenderly  and  quaintly  he  talked  of  'the 
little  woman  from  Chicago,'  and  how  our 
hearts  go  out  to  her  in  this  unspeakable  trial 
in  deepest  tenderness,  sympathy,  love  and 
prayer,  and  how  we  thank  God  for  the 
abundant  grace  that  is  not  only  sustaining 
her  but  making  her  'more  than  conqueror 
through  Him  that  loved  her.' 

'  'He  saw  him  no  more.  And  he  cried, 
Where  is  the  Lord  God  of  Elijah?'  His  mas- 
ter would  never  again  return,  but  his  God 
was  still  the  all-sufficient  Jehovah.  Our 
brother  has  left  us.  How  unspeakably  we 


164     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

feel  the  loss!  How  ill  we  can  spare  him 
from  our  depleted  ranks  and  our  straggling 
skirmishers  along  the  firing  line!  But  his 
God  is  still  our  'heritage,  and  He  who  gave 
us  Cookman,  Lelacheur,  Wilson  and  Mem- 
inger  is  still  able  to  supply  our  need,  to  re- 
cruit our  ranks  and  to  prove  as  He  has  so 
often  proved  to  us  before  that  it  is  'not  by 
might,  nor  by  power,  but  by  My  Spirit,  saith 
the  Lord  of  Hosts.'  Let  us  not  be  discour- 
aged, but  take  up  his  mantle,  claim  the  pow- 
er and  the  promises  of  his  God,  and  go  forth 
to  finish  his  work  and  ours." 

Rev.  and  Mrs.  F.  H.  Senft  sang  the  hymn 
well  known  among  Alliance  friends,  "I've 
Yielded  to  God  and  I'm  Saved  Every  Hour," 
Mr.  Senft  telling  how  several  years  ago 
when  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Meminger  were  out 
West  in  the  work  they  received  word  by  tel- 
egraph of  the  sudden  death  of  their  son. 
They  continued  their  work,  not  leaving  it  to 
attend  the  funeral,  but  God  gave  them  vic- 
tory and  they  sang  together  this  beautiful 
hymn. 

Mr.  Senft  then  related  how  seventeen 
years  ago,  when  he,  M.r.  Senft,  had  just  be- 
gun work  on  full  Gospel  lines  in  the  city  of 


Memorial  Services  165 

Altoona,  the  friends  in  Tyrone,  fourteen 
miles  east,  would  come  up  to  the  special  all- 
day  meetings,  Mr.  Meminger  among  them, 
and  his  father-in-law,  the  Rev.  (John  D. 
Stewart.  These  friends  from  Tyrone  were 
compelled  to  wait  after  the  night  services 
for  the  midnight  train,  and  they  held  some 
remarkable  after  meetings  of  great  spiritual 
power.  "How  I  can  see,"  said  Mr.  Senft, 
"that  little  company  yet  as  we  lingered  at 
the  feet  of  Jesus  there  in  that  after  meeting, 
where  victories  were  won.  A  little  later  af- 
ter attending  some  of  these  meetings,  our 
dear  brother  came  up  to  Altoona  and  had  a 
season  of  prayer  for  divine  direction.  If  I 
were  at  home  he  would  take  it  of  the  Lord 
that  he  was  to  have  a  season  of  prayer  and 
an  interview  with  us.  When  he  got  off  the 
train  I  was  there  at  the  station  for  some 
purpose,  and  in  a  few  moments  we  were 
at  home,  and  there  in  that  upper  room  he 
unburdened  his  heart  and  we  waited  at  the 
feet  of  Jesus  for  a  while.  I  had  known  pre- 
viously that  he  had  broken  down  some  few 
years  before  after  a  remarkable  ministry  in 
evangelistic  work  in  many  places,  during 
which  hundreds  of  souls  had  been  saved, 
with  a  serious  affection  of  the  throat,  and 


166     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

had  been  compelled  to  give  up  preaching  and 
go  into  secular  business  though  he  remained 
an  active  worker  in  the  church  where  he 
lived.  As  we  knelt  and  waited  upon  God 
and  as  the  oil  was  poured  upon  him  the 
Lord  filled  the  room  and  the  little  company 
and  healed  him,  and  sent  him  forth  as  a  nam- 
ing torch.  I  thank  God  for  this  little  fellow- 
ship with  him  and  have  followed  him  with 
praise  to  God  all  these  years  as  he  has  been 
with  us,  one  of  us  in  a  true  sense,  as  a  broth- 
er said  only  a  few  days  before  his  death, 
'through  and  through  an  Alliance  man,  im- 
bued with  the  truth  and  the  spirit  that  God 
has  given  to  us  as  a  mighty  trust  in  these 
last  days.'  Let  us  be  faithful  to  all  that  our 
God  has  for  us  and  pray  that  the  ranks  may 
be  filled  and  the  work  go  on  for  Hjis  glory." 
Rev.  W.  T.  MacArthur,  who  succeeded 
Mr.  Meminger  in  the  Alliance  work  in  Chi- 
cago, and  who  had  come  into  very  close 
touch  with  him  as  Mir.  Meminger  continued 
to  make  his  home  there,  next  spoke.  He 
said,  "I  have  to  confess  to  selfishness  when 
I  heard  of  his  death — I  could  not  understand 
it.  I  dreaded  to  meet  Mrs.  Meminger, 
knowing  how  attached  they  were  to  each 
other — they  were  inseparable.  I  thought 


Memorial  Services  167 

perhaps  it  would  kill  her,  but  I  lost  sight 
of  that  when  I  heard  her  singing: 

"  'Blessed  assurance,  Jesus  is  mine, 
Oh,  what  a  foretaste  of  glory  divine.' 

"And  I  thought,  she  is  all  right;  the  Com- 
forter has  come  to  her.  But  what  about 
our  poor  work !  Each  one  of  us  doing  more 
than  one  man's  work,  and  it  seems  as  though 
it  could  not  be  possible  that  we  had  lost 
one,  especially  as  I  noticed  in  him  and  re- 
marked to  one  of  our  superintendents  a  few 
days  ago  what  wonderful  strides  he  seemed 
to  have  made  in  the  spiritual  life.  Well,  God 
is  able  to  raise  up  a  successor,  another 
worker  or  workers  that  will  accomplish  the 
work.  It  may  be  there  isn't  so  very  much 
more  for  us  to  do.  It  may  be  that  Jesus  is 
just  coming." 

Mr.  Meminger  had  been  for  several  cam- 
paigns with  Rev.  R.  A.  Forrest,  Superinten- 
dent of  the  Southern  Alliance  work,  and  he 
was  next  to  speak.  "We  have  had  the  pleas- 
ure of  having  had  Mr.  and  Mrs.  Mteminger 
with  us  in  the  South  for  a  number  of  cam- 
paigns. Last  year  they  were  with  us  for 
five  months  consecutively  without  any 


1 68     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

break.  We  were  together  every  day.  Since 
then  we  have  had  him  with  us  for  two  or 
three  shorter  tours  and  just  recently  down 
in  Atlanta  and  then  Durham,  N.  C,  where 
we  have  a  Fourfold  Gospel  Tabernacle.  Mr. 
Johnson,  pastor  of  this  Gospel  Tabernacle, 
has  written  me  twice  about  these  meetings, 
and  said  that  it  seemed  to  him  as  if  there 
was  an  aurora  of  glory  around  his  whole 
person  as  he  spoke,  and  the  power  of  God 
fell  upon  the  people  as  never  before.  M,any 
souls  were  saved,  many  Christians  definitely 
received  the  Holy  Ghost,  and  the  work  in 
Durham  has  doubled  through  Mr.  Memin- 
ger's  ministry. 

"I  want  to  give  a  personal  testimony.  I 
have  never  met  a  man  who  was  more  thor- 
oughly God's  man,  or  an  Alliance  worker 
more  thoroughly  an  Alliance  worker.  There 
wasn't  a  flaw  in  his  fellowship  or  service. 
In  all  those  months  of  campaigning  we  nev- 
er asked  him  to  take  a  service  but  what  he 
nodded  his  head  in  his  characteristic  way 
and  said,  'Vtery  well.'  On  the  other  hand 
if  we  asked  him  to  give  up  a  service  he 
would  give  the  same  characteristic  nod 
and  say,  'Very  well.'  I  counted  it  a  great 
privilege  to  have  known  him.  I  am  a  better 


Memorial  Services  169 

man  to-day  because  I  have  been  with  him. 
Since  the  Lord  called  him  home  there  has 
been  a  cry  in  my  heart  day  and  night  that 
God  will  help  us  to  be  as  faithful  to  God  as 
he  has  been  for  the  work's  sake  and  for  His 
sake." 

The  service  closed  with  the  hymn, 
"Asleep  in  Jesus,  blessed  sleep."  The  re- 
mains were  then  taken  to  Tyrone,  Pa., 
where  a  service  was  held  on  Saturday, 
where  the  funeral  service  and  interment 
took  place. 

The  funeral  services  were  held  in  Tyrone, 
Saturday  afternoon  at  2  P.M'. 

After  a  song  from  the  choir  Dr.  Stein,  of 
the  Methodist  Episcopal  Church,  read  Exo- 
dus v.  The  Rev.  Mr.  Gunter,  of  the  Presby- 
terian Church,  followed  by  prayer. 

Rev.  E.  D.  Whiteside,  of  Pittsburg,  then 
spoke,  using  for  his  text  the  last  clause  of 
I.  Chronicles  iv.  23,  "There  they  dwelt  with 
the  king  for  his  work." 

First,  he  spoke  of  the  dignity  of  the  work 
for  the  King.  For  what  purpose  are  we 
here  ?  Why  are  we  in  Tyrone  ?  Not  to  hon- 
or man,  but  to  honor  the  King.  We  want  to 
honor  Him  by  our  lives  and  by  our  testi- 


170     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

mony,  witnessing  to  the  world  the  great- 
ness of  our  King,  and  to  the  fact  that  He  is 
soon  to  return. 

Second,  fellowship  with  the  King  in  His 
business.  The  King  has  called  us  to  co- 
operate with  Him  in  the  great  work  of  evan- 
gelizing the  world  and  to  witness  to  the  heal- 
ing power  of  God.  The  Holy  Spirit  has  been 
sent  to  quicken  us  and  to  equip  us  for  the 
great  work  of  the  King. 

Third,  the  workman  trained  by  the  King 
Himself.  The  Holy  Spirit  is  the  great 
Teacher,  and  He  sends  us  up  and  down  the 
land  as  living  witnesses.  He  said,  "I  have 
known  our  Brother  Meminger  for  several 
years,  having  first  met  him  in  Tyrone,  and 
our  fellowship  has  been  very  precious,  as  he 
has  been  with  us  at  various  times  in  our  con- 
ventions and  meetings  in  Pittsburg."  Mr. 
Whiteside  then  spoke  of  his  striking  person- 
ality, his  unique  methods,  and  his  holy  zeal, 
and  of  his  untiring  services  and  busy  career 
of  the  later  year:  going  across  and  up  and 
down  the  continent  as  a  flaming  evangel  in 
every  direction,  in  the  work  of  the  King  to 
whom  he  was  so  loyal.  He  also  spoke  of 
Mr.  Meminger's  last  hours  in  New  York 
City  at  the  street  meeting,  and  very  tender- 


Memorial  Services  171 

ly  rehearsed  the  manner  in  which  he  laid 
down  his  life  so  suddenly  at  the  feet  of 
Jesus,  and  also  made  mention  of  the  salva- 
tion of  the  man  in  the  very  spot  where  M!r. 
Meminger  had  fallen,  as  a  response  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  to  the  last  pregnant  cry  of  our 
brother's  lips,  "My  heart  is  breaking  for 
souls,"  uttered  just  before  he  fell  to  the 
ground. 

A  strong  personal  appeal  was  given  to  all 
present  in  closing,  and  Mr.  Whiteside  was 
followed  by  Mr.  George  L.  Glunt,  also  of 
Pittsburg,  who  said  in  part: 

"  'Thanks  be  unto  God  who  giveth  us  the 
victory  through  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ.' 

"Victory  in  life  and  victory  in  death.  Sud- 
den death  bringing  sudden  glory. 

"The  occasion  which  brings  us  here  at 
this  time  would  plunge  us  into  the  deepest 
gloom  and  despair  if  it  were  not  for  the  fact 
of  the  glorious  hope  of  the  resurrection  from 
the  dead  and  eternal  life  through  our  Lord 
Jesus  Christ. 

"Blessed  (happy)  are  the  dead  which  die 
in  the  Lord  from  henceforth.  Yea,  saith 
the  Spirit,  that  they  may  rest  from  their  la- 
bors ;  and  their  work  do  follow  them. 


172     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

"I  thank  God  for  the  lives  of  such  men  as 
our  departed  Brother  Meminger.  He  was 
one  of  my  good  friends,  and  my  home  in 
Pittsburg  was  one  of  the  many  homes  which 
the  Lord  gave  to  him. 

"On  a  recent  visit,  after  coming  in  tired 
from  a  long  trip,  and  having  discussed  var- 
ious phases  of  the  Lord's  work,  we  knelt  in 
prayer  and  this  was  a  time  long  to  be  re- 
membered, and  we  have  frequently  spoken 
of  it  as  a  time  of  refreshing  from  the  pres- 
ence of  the  Lord.  Brother  Meminger,  as 
he  prayed,  laughed  and  wept,  and  the  glory 
of  the  Lord  filled  the  room,  and  His  pres- 
ence was  never  more  real  than  at  that  mid- 
night hour. 

"He  gave  me  priceless  advice  concerning 
the  work,  and  things  pertaining  to  the  king- 
dom. God  has  since  called  me  to  be  an 
evangelist  and  we  cannot  tell  how  much  has 
been  due  to  Brother  Meminger's  prayer  and 
brotherly  counsel. 

"I  somehow  associate  his  last  message  to 
the  great  crowd  of  workingmen  in  New 
York  City,  with  the  great  message  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  that  day  at  Capernaum,  when 
He  addressed  the  great  crowd  of  poor,  sick, 
blind  and  lame,  crying  to  them  in  their  mis- 


Memorial  Services  173 

ery,  sin  and  discouragements:  'Come  unto 
Me.' 

"Brother  Meminger  went  through  the 
States  in  churches  and  tents  and  on  the 
streets  of  the  cities,  calling  men  to  'flee  from 
the  wrath  to  come/ 

"His  life  has  been  a  great  inspiration  to 
me ;  and  were  I  to  choose  my  departure 
from  this  world  I  could  not  desire  anything 
more  grand  than  to  leave  as  he  did. 

"What  lesson  are  we  to  learn  from  the 
circumstances  which  surround  us  to-day? 
May  God  by  His  Spirit  speak  to  all  of  our 
hearts  regardless  of  our  place  or  position  in 
the  world,  and  may  there  come  a  great  fu- 
ture out  of  this  providence.  May  the  un- 
saved hear  the  voice  of  Jesus,  saying,  'Come 
unto  Me.' 

"May  the  business  man  arise  from  the 
spirit  of  materialism  to  a  place  of  victory, 
and  may  those  who  sorrow  find  a  closer  fel- 
lowship with  the  Comforter  who  can  be  a 
husband  to  the  widow  and  a  father  to  the 
fatherless." 

After  the  choir  sang  "Some  Day  We'll 
Understand,"  the  service  closed  by  prayer 
from  the  former  pastor,  Rev.  Mr.  Warren. 


CHAPTER  XVII. 
TRIBUTES. 

WE  have  received  a  volume  of  testi- 
monies to-  the  life  and  character  of 
our  brother,  many  of  great  length. 
We  feel  it  would  seem  like  gilding  the  re- 
fined gold  to  add  words  of  eulogy  to  the 
picture  which  has  already  spoken  for  it- 
self in  the  preceding  pages.  We  cannot  re- 
frain, however,  from  extracting  a  few  lines 
from  this  multitude  of  tributes  which  we  feel 
would  unduly  exceed  the  size  of  the  volume. 
Among  others  Rev.  J.  D.  Williams,  Secretary 
of  the  Board  of  the  Christian  and  Missionary 
Alliance  writes: 

"It  was  the  privilege  of  the  writer  to  know 
Brother  Meminger  for  about  fourteen 
years,  and  during  all  that  time  he  spent 
his  life  unselfishly  in  active  service 
for  the  Miaster.  How  often  his  voice  has 
been  heard  in  Conventions  of  the  Chris- 
tian and  Missionary  Alliance  and  in  other 
religious  gatherings  and  scores  of  souls 
have  been  saved  and  filled  with  the  Spirit  un- 
der his  faithful  preaching  and  teaching.  He 
was  one  of  God's  true  Ministers  who  fear- 
lessly declared  the  truth  without  partiality, 


MRS.    WILBUR   F.    MEMINGER. 


Tributes  175 

and  in  the  fear  of  the  Lord.  He  was  aggress- 
ive in  spirit,  always  pressing  onward  to  high- 
er ground." 

Rev.  H.  L.  Stevens,  superintendent  of  the 
Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance  in  Canada, 
writes : 

"The  shock  to  my  heart  when  the  news  of 
dear  Brother  Meminger's  home  going  reached 
me  was  only  relieved  by  the  assurance  that 
sudden  death  to  him  meant  sudden  glory. 

"I  can't  forget  our  trip  together  through  the 
great  Northwest  a  little  over  two  years  ago. 

"Throughout  all  that  long  journey  the  thing 
that  impressed  me  most  was  not  only  his  faith- 
fulness in  prayer  and  preaching  of  the  Word, 
but  especially  the  beautiful  spirit  of  willing- 
ness and  humility,  in  ministering  to  the  small- 
est companies  of  people  as  well  as  the  larger 
audiences,  and  the  earnest  way  in  which  he 
entered  into  every  service.  Not  once  did  I 
hear  him  complain. 

"The  last  time  we  were  together  was  at  the 
Summer  Convention  in  Toronto  in  1909  and 
my  last  view  of  him  is  indelibly  impressed  on 
my  memory  as  he  poured  out  his  soul  to  God 
for  the  people  in  his  closing  prayer  while  the 
tears  rained  down  his  face.  We  little  thought 
that  we  should  not  see  him  again." 


176     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

Rev.  George  P.  Pardington,  Ph.D.,  of  the 
Nyack  Institute,  writes : 

"In  personal  appearance  he  united  strength, 
gracefulness  and  attractiveness.  He  had  a 
winsome  smile  and  a  real  charm  of  manner. 

"As  a  preacher  and  platform  speaker  Mr. 
Meminger  was  unique.  Both  in  material  and 
in  delivery  his  sermons  and  addresses  were 
peculiar  to  himself.  His  object  was  the 
salvation  of  the  sinners  and  the  edfication  of 
believers — in  a  word,  getting  men  and  women 
to  the  point  of  moral  decision.  To  him  this 
need  was  greater  than  any  mission.  His  il- 
lustrations were  often  homely  but  always  tell- 
ing. 

"In  his  interests  and  sympathies  Mr.  Mem- 
inger was  democratic,  his  hand  clasp  was 
hearty,  his  smile  winsome  and  his  greeting 
cheery.  There  was,  in  fact,  the  ring  of  sin- 
cerity about  the  whole  man." 

Rev.  A.  E.  Funk,  Secretary  of  the  Chris- 
tian asd  Missionary  Alliance,  was  abroad  at 
the  time  of  Mr.  Meminger's  departure,  and 
he  writes: 
"Dear  Mrs.  Meminger: — 

"The  sad  news  of  Brother  Meminger's  sud- 
den departure  which  reached  me  at  Port  Said, 
Egypt,  on  my  missionary  journey  was  a  great 


Tributes  177 

shock  and  had  a  very  solemnizing  effect  on  my 
spirit.  I  felt  as  if  another  pillar  of  the  Alli- 
ance had  been  taken  and  it  would  be  difficult 
to  find  one  like  him  to  put  into  the  vacant 
place.  I  felt  a  loving  and  praying  friend  had 
been  taken  from  my  side.  He  always  mani- 
fested a  deep  interest  in  the  missionaries  and 
he  loved  them  all.  His  abundant  prayers  for 
them  were  always  intense  and  full  of  faith. 
He  was  a  lover  of  the  truth,  a  defender  of  the 
Word  and  the  Faith  'once  for  all  delivered  to 
the  saints.'  A  true  preacher  of  the  true  Gos- 
pel, a  lover  of  souls  and  a  strenuous  worker 
in  God's  vineyard.  He  will  ever  remain  dear 
in  the  memory  of  those  who  knew  him.  His 
works  do  follow  him.  Blessed  is  he  with  the 
Lord  and  at  His  glorious  appearing  he  will 
appear  with  Him  in  glory.  God  be  with  you 
in  comfort  and  upholding." 

A.  E.  FUNK. 

"It  was  given  to  me  to  accompany  from  time 
to  time  prominent  Alliance  leaders  and  work- 
ers, as  also  returned  missionaries,  on  the  Pa- 
cific Coast  section  of  their  tours.  It  was  thus 
that  I  came  in  contact  with  them  personally 
and  under  peculiar  opportunity  of  observa- 
tion such  as  served  to  reveal  their  real  char- 


178     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

acteristics.  I  had  much  of  this  opportunity  to 
see  the  real  off-guard  man  Meminger.  I  may 
say  emphatically  that  I  never  knew  a  man  to 
wear  better  than  Brother  Meminger.  He 
never  was  off  guard,  for  he  never  was  on 
guard,  i.  e:  in  any  studied,  artificial,  occa- 
sional sense.  Yet  in  the  true  Scriptural  sense 
he  was  always  on  guard.  Under  all  the  vary- 
ing circumstances  of  itinerant  work  I  never 
knew  any  'shadow  of  turning'  in  him.  He 
never  turned  tourist,  but  was  as  one  sent  on 
a  business  which  knew  no  intermission.  He 
was  'instant  in  season,  out  of  season.'  He 
seemed  to  maintain  consciously  the  presence 
and  communion  of  Jesus.  The  Saviour 
seemed  incessantly  precious  and  dear  to  him. 
While  free  from  all  eagerness  and  feverish- 
ness,  yet  he  was  instantly  and  fully  ready  for 
the  word  or  deed  needed,  whether  in  public 
or  in  private.  He  was  the  perfect  gentleman 
at  all  times,  toward  all  classes,  in  his  disposi- 
tion and  demeanor,  and  even  in  his  dress. 

"He  never  had  a  complaint  or  fault  to  find. 
He  never  was  guilty  of  back-biting  or  reflec- 
tions upon  others.  He  was  inexhaustibly 
charitable.  He  saw  so  much  to  enjoy  and 
commend  in  others,  in  individuals,  in  compa- 
nies, in  the  meetings. 


Tributes  179 

"He  never  wearied  of  well-doing  and  never 
let  any  know  that  he  experienced  weariness 
in  his  labors,  although  he  must  have  often 
been  greatly  worn.  He  never  evaded  an  op- 
portunity and  he  left  one  feeling  that  day  by 
day  every  new  step  saw  the  duty  of  the  pre- 
vious step  fully  performed. 

"The  supreme  test  was  when  the  news  met 
him  and  his  wife  that  their  son  Charles  had 
met  with  instant  death.  This  did  not  cause  a 
halt,  a  murmur,  or  a  weakness.  It  was  an 
added  power  in  praise  prayer  and  preaching. 

"Could  he  plead  his  favorite  theme  of  sal- 
vation for  all  the  family,  how  earnestly  and 
effectively  he  labored  to  make  family  circles 
complete  in  the  Lord  Jesus !  I  doubt  not, 
many  a  poor  wanderer,  many  a  child,  many  a 
young  man  or  woman,  many  a  parent,  many 
a  husband  or  wife,  yea,  many  a  whole  family, 
will  rise  up  in  the  everlasting  kingdom  to 
crown  Mr.  Meminger  with  grateful  acknow- 
ledgements. And  the  Lord  Jesus  will  say, 
'Well  done,  Thou  good  and  faithful  servant.'  " 

"W.  C.  STEVENS," 
"Principal  Missionary  Institute, 

Nyack,  N.  Y." 

"Mr.  Meminger  was  an  inspiration  to  me, 


i8o     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

in  his  life  and  unselfish  ministry  to  others.  In 
his  teaching  on  divine  healing  he  was  most 
helpful.  We  often  worked  together  in  the 
convention  after  meetings,  at  Nyack  and  Old 
Orchard,  and  I  always  felt  that  he  was  a  man 
of  God  and  greatly  beloved  by  the  people. 
Our  dear  brother  had  his  own  quaint,  original 
and  forcible  way  of  presenting  the  truth  in  the 
power  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  which  I  believe  bore 
much  fruit  in  the  lives  of  others." 

"MlSS    LlNDENBERGER." 

"My  dear  Friend : — 

"In  reply  to  yours  of  March  3Oth,  it  affords 
me  a  sad  pleasure  to  write  a  word  or  two  in 
memory  of  our  dear  brother  Meminger,  who 
has  been  called  to  be  with  his  Lord. 

"I  knew  him  for  years,  and  saw  him  in  the 
work  he  loved  so  dearly  in  Boston,  New  York, 
Chicago,  and  other  places.  It  was  in  this 
city,  however,  that  we  more  frequently  met, 
and  where  for  a  while  he  led  a  class-meeting 
on  Saturday  mornings  in  the  Moody  Church, 
and  conducted  the  gatherings  of  the  Christian 
Alliance  in  Willard  Hall. 

"His  Christianity  was  of  the  joyously  ener- 
getic type  of  our  Methodist  brethren,  and  un- 
der his  leadership  a  meeting  could  not  go  to 


Tributes  181 

sleep.  He  was  an  evangelist  to  the  tips  of  his 
fingers,  and  knew  how  to  get  people  "started" 
as  they  say,  about  as  well  as  any  one  I  recall 
in  comparison  with  him. 

"He  was  particularly  earnest  in  public  pray- 
er, and  seemed  to  know  God  as  his  Father 
through  Jesus  Christ  as  Christians  generally 
do  not. 

"His  cheery  manner,  and  smiling  face  and 
hopeful  utterances  were  a  great  benediction 
where  he  went,  and  for  which  all  who  remem- 
ber him  have  cause  for  sincerest  gratitude 
and  praise. 

"With  cordial  and  sympathetic  remem- 
brances, I  am 

"Faithfully  yours, 
"JAMES  M.  GRAY." 

"We  are  glad  to  be  permitted  to  contribute 
a  few  words  of  testimony  to  our  beloved 
friend  and  brother,  Rev.  W.  F.  Meminger. 

"We  praise  God,  that  during  our  recent  fur- 
lough in  America  we  had  the  inestimable 
privilege  of  attending  several  conventions  in 
company  with  him,  and  also  remember  with 
much  pleasure  the  happy  hours  we  spent  in 
religious  and  social  communication  as  we 
travelled  from  place  to  place. 


182     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

"He  was  indeed  a  blessing  to  us,  and  the 
missionaries  had  no  better  friend  in  the  home- 
land than  our  dear  brother.  How  we  enjoy- 
ed his  fervent  messages,  so  full  of  the  Gospel, 
interspersed  now  and  then  with  a  loud  sing- 
ing hallelujah  which  would  cause  one's  faith 
to  mount  up  several  degrees  higher.  If  the 
messages  of  the  "Little  Man  from  Chicago," 
as  he  loved  to  call  himself,  were  fervent, 
much  more  were  his  prayers.  Many  times 
at  an  altar  service  when  others  seemed  to 
have  prayed  out,  he  would  pour  out  his  soul 
in  such  unction  that  all  would  be  blessed. 

"His  desire  for  souls  and  extension  of  the 
Kingdom  of  God  is  well  summed  up  in  a 
phrase  which  he  was  fond  of  using,  viz. :  'A 
keener  blade  and  a  wider  swath  in  the  harvest 
field.'  Thank  God  for  such  a  life  as  that  of 
Bro.  Meminger,  and  may  we  all  who  are  still 
in  the  whitened  fields  follow  him  as  he  fol- 
lowed Christ." 

"MR.  &  MRS.  WILMOTH  A.  FARMER, 
Fin  Cheo  Fu,  Kwang  Si,  South  China." 

"Some  years  ago  it  was  my  privilege  to 
move  to  the  Pacific  Northwest,  and  locate 
in  Everett,  Washington.  It  was  my  desire  for 
some  time  to  have  our  dear  Brother  and  Sis- 


Tributes  183 

ter  Meminger  visit  our  district,  and  especially 
our  city.  This  privilege  was  granted  and  last 
April  he  and  his  beloved  wife  came  and  held 
conventions  along  the  Coast  and  were  with  us 
both  here  and  at  Mukilteo.  At  that  time  we 
were  starting  the  new  Tabernacle  and  the  cor- 
nerstone was  laid  by  our  brother. 

"On  the  Sunday  afternoon  we  all  marched 
up  the  street  to  the  lot  singing, 

'We're  marching  to  Zion,' 

and  after  prayer  and  song  and  a  few  appropri- 
ate remarks,  the  stone  was  put  in  place  by  our 
Brother's  hands." 

"MRS.  A.  C.  YORK." 

"Dear  Sister  Meminger: — 

"It  is  with  pleasure  that  I  pause  to  write  a 
few  words  of  appreciation  for  your  book ;  and 
as  I  do  so,  loving  memories  of  my  past  asso- 
ciations with  our  dear  Brother  Meminger 
come  vividly  and  pleasantly  to  me. 

"Our  first  acquaintance  was  at  a  convention 
of  the  Christian  and  Missionary  Alliance,  held 
in  the  Moody  Church  in  Chicago.  I  was  chair- 
man of  the  local  board,  hence  it  devolved  upon 
me  to  introduce  him,  not  only  to  the  conven- 
tion, but  to  the  local  members  of  the  Alliance 
that  he  had  come  to  serve,  which  brought  me 


184     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

into  a  close,  and  intimate  relationship  with  him 
from  the  start,  while  his  genial,  pleasant,  and 
agreeable  manner  won  his  way  into  the  hearts 
of  all. 

"As  a  Christian  minister  he  was  successful ; 
His  evident  close  and  intimate  relationship 
with  the  Holy  Spirit  gave  him  unusual  power 
in  prayer.  While  praying  for  those  seeking 
salvation,  or  for  the  sick,  he  reached  the  throne 
by  a  well  trodden  path,  and  God  loved  to  an- 
swer his  prayer  of  faith. 

"Brother  Meminger  was  always  considerate, 
kind  and  pleasant.  I  never  knew  him  to  en- 
gage in  gossip  or  talk  that  would  reflect  un- 
kindly on  anybody.  He  was  always  a  wel- 
come guest  at  my  home,  appreciated  both  by 
myself  and  my  wife,  who  is  now  in  glory  with 
him. 

"I  loved  him  as  a  brother,  and  indeed  he 
was  a  dear  brother  in  Christ. 

"He  was  an  honest,  true  and  faithful  friend, 
a  conscientious,  noble  living  example  as  a 
Christian,  in  the  truest  sense. 

"R.  H.  TRUMBULL." 

"People  talk  of  two  kinds  of  Christians, 
viz.,  long-faced  and  round-faced  ones,  Mr. 
Meminger  belonged  to  the  latter.  He  was 


Tributes  185 

always  bubbling  over  with  the  joy  of  the 
Lord. 

"All  who  have  read  his  spicy  reports  in  the 
Alliance  paper  will  remember  how  God's  side, 
the  bright  side,  the  shining  side  was  brought 
out.  Although  the  cares  of  many,  and  the 
trials  of  the  different  branches  were  poured 
into  his  ears,  he  always  had  the  right  word  of 
comfort,  and  with  those  in  trouble  called  upon 
Him  who  alone  knows  all  about  our  struggles. 

"He  was  too  young  at  the  time  of  the  civil 
war  to  enlist,  but  he  had  a  military  turn  of 
mind. 

"His  writings  and  messages  were  alive 
with  the  truth,  that  the  Captain  of  his  salva- 
tion never  lost  a  battle. 

"Oh  that  more  of  us  would  lift  up,  and  look 
up  knowing  that  He  is  our  victor,  and  con- 
quering One !"  "REV.  J.  C.  BAKER." 

"It  gives  me  great  pleasure  to  add  my  little 
quota  to  the  words  of  love  and  tenderness 
concerning  our  dear  departed  friend  and 
brother,  the  Rev.  Wilbur  F.  Meminger. 
\Vhile  pastor  in  Chicago  I  knew  him  well  and 
appreciated  him.  On  several  occasions  I  had 
him  in  my  pulpit  and  he  conducted  one  series 
of  special  meetings  for  me.  He  was  often  in 


186     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

my  home,  and  his  bright  and  cheerful  presence 
was  always  refreshing. 

"First.  And  now,  first  of  all,  let  me  say 
that  Mr.  Meminger  was  a  gentleman.  What- 
ever else  he  may  have  been,  he  was  a  gentle- 
man. 

"Second.     He  was  a  Christian. 

"He  loved  his  Lord  and  he  was  whole- 
hearted in  it.  To  him  the  wonder  was  that 
everybody  did  not  seek  to  be  a  Christian.  And 
his  one  consuming  passion  was  that  of  making 
Christians. 

"Third.  He  knew  the  art — fine  art — di- 
vine art  of  prayer.  Once  having  heard  him 
pray  you  could  never  forget  it.  He  prayed  as 
one  who  knew  God.  He  expected  answers 
from  heaven  and  he  received  them. 

"Fourth.  He  loved  the  lost.  He  was  once 
himself  lost  and  he  never  forgot  the  horrors 
of  it.  He  looked  upon  lost  men  as  more  or 
less  given  over  to  the  service  of  the  evil  one, 
and  it  was  easy  for  him  to  see  what  invalu- 
able service  they  might  be  rendering  the  Lord 
Jesus  if  only  they  were  truly  saved. 

"Fifth.     He  was  ready  to  meet  his  Lord. 

"  'Happy  the  man  that  so  orders  his  life, 
and  so  lives,  that  God  can  thus  instantly  speak 


Tributes  187 

the  word  only,  and  summon  his  servant  with 
perfect  safety  into  His  holy  presence !'  " 

"REV.  MILTON  M.  BALES,  D.D." 

"To  say  that  our  beloved  brother  has  died, 
or  that  he  has  fallen  asleep,  does  not  fitly  de- 
scribe the  manner  of  his  departure.  He  was 
taken  from  us:  Less  to  corporal  change, 
nothing  could  have  been  more  rapid  or  nearer 
to  translation,  when  in  a  twinkling  of  an  eye 
we  shall  be  changed.  We  feel  drawn  nearer 
to  his  bereaved  wife  in  her  present  sorrow  by 
reason  of  the  fiery  trial  and  overwhelming 
affliction  through  which  they  were  passing  on 
their  first  visit,  and  our  first  acquaintance  with 
them  at  Riverside,  California. 

"It  was  then  that  faith  and  fortitude  shone 
forth  in  the  crucible  of  their  sorrow  and  im- 
pressed indelibly  on  our  hearts  that  there  were 
two  who  indeed  knew  their  God. 

"Who  could  have  discerned  under  the  calm 
exterior  of  this  Field-marshal  of  the  Lord  and 
the  Alliance,  for  the  first  time  before  our 
small  unemotional  company  that  then  formed 
the  Riverside  Branch  Meeting  that  afternoon 
in  the  First  Baptist  Church,  that  there  beat  a 
heart  bowed  down  with  the  weight  of  sorrow 
and  torn  by  the  news  of  a  great  and  sudden  ca- 


1 88     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

lamity,  which  had  overtaken  them  while  in  the 
North  of  the  State  by  a  brief,  cruel  telegraphic 
sentence,  announcing  the  disaster  and  death  of 
their  sturdy,  promising  youngest  son,  cut  off  in 
the  bud  of  his  manhood  while  railroading  on 
one  of  the  transcontinental  lines. 

"What  a  testimony!  These  two  noble  ser- 
vants of  God !  He,  with  an  indomitable  ener- 
gy and  unquenchable  seal;  she,  with  her  in- 
tense love  and  desire  to  serve,  had  together 
braved  some  perilous  travel  amidst  the  mid- 
winter storms  of  the  Rockies; — he,  with  his 
dynamic  utterances  and  startling  climaxes; 
she,  with  her  modest  book  counter,  recom- 
mending the  Gospel  in  word  and  writ. 

"Heaven  will  have  chronicled  the  heroism 
of  that  day,  when  for  the  first  time  since  the 
staggering  blow,  their  forwarded  mail  brought 
the  heart-breaking  details.  They  read  and 
wept  together.  But  they  stood  before  that 
waiting  company,  unconscious  of  the  facts 
with  the  glow  of  Heaven's  grace  upon  His  face 
and  the  dominant  note  of  victory  in  his 
message. 

"He  related  how  they  had  been  snowbound, 
suffering  by  reason  of  long  delays  and  narrow 
and  thrilling  escapes  from  accidents.  But  like 
one  marching  in  the  ranks  of  an  advancing 


Tributes  189 

host  they  had  passed  through,  and  amidst 
cloud  and  smoke  of  a  terrific  and  almost  mor- 
tal combat  appeared  that  beautiful  afternoon 
and  night  in  fragrant  Riverside,  the  orange 
garden  of  California,  lifting  the  standard  on 
high  in  their  testimony  of  praise  to  super- 
natural victory  and  the  reality  of  a  full  Gos- 
pel, revealed  indeed  on  Calvary's  shadow 
and  resurrection  triumph,  especially  as  the  ex- 
perience of  our  dear  Brother  and  Sister  be- 
came fully  apprehended. 

"His  personality  and  ministry  suggested  the 
sure  combination  of  Elijah  and  Elisha,  an 
evangelist  of  the  Gospel  of  Grace,  but  an  un- 
compromising prophet  of  judgment,  whose 
presence  and  message  seem  to  be  consonant 
with  the  fire,  the  whirlwind,  the  earthquake 
and  the  cataclysms  that  herald  the  Lord's  com- 
ing and  the  knell  of  dawn.  In  the  light  of  his 
life  and  ministry,  the  world  of  his  thought 
and  the  strenuousness  of  his  labors,  this  sud- 
den call  is  a  consistent  and  glorious  departure. 
"GERARD  A.  BAILLEY." 

"We  had  the  privilege  of  Brother  and  Sis- 
ter Meminger's  presence  in  our  home  in  West 
Pittston,  Pa.,  for  a  week.  Here  we  enjoyed 
the  sweet  fellowship  and  beauty  of  their  lives. 


190     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

We  caught  a  glimpse  of  the  self-sacrifice  of 
these  two  dear  ones.  They  had  just  returned 
from  a  campaign  in  Western  Canada,  Calgary 
and  Winnipeg,  fraught  with  much  suffering, 
being  blockaded  by  snow  for  a  few  days.  But 
in  spite  of  all  the  privations  and  hardships 
consequent  with  the  life  of  an  evangelist,  he 
kept  pressing  on.  This  was  the  prominent  and 
predominant  spirit  in  Brother  Meminger,  to 
spend  and  be  spent  for  the  Master. 

"We  can  only  say,  'How  have  the  mighty 
fallen !'  We  had  begun  in  speculation  to  count 
the  days  until  Mother  and  Father  Meminger 
would  be  with  us,  when  one  day  the  news  was 
brought  to  us  that  he  had  gone  to  his  reward. 
Sister  Stone  and  I  were  just  sitting  down  to 
our  dinner.  Needless  to  say  that  the  meal  re- 
mained untouched.  We  bowed  our  heads  and 
wept  and  wept  in  the  agony  of  our  spirits  as 
we  realized  our  loss,  and  then  the  Holy  Spirit 
reminded  us  of  one  who  was  suffering  far 
keener  than  we  were  or  could,  and  then  we 
bowed  in  prayer  for  her  who  was  left. 

"Such  unselfishness  and  complete  abandon- 
ment of  selfish  desires  and  motives  could  not 
but  inspire  the  hearts  of  his  hearers,  and  could 
only  bring  down  the  blessing  and  benediction 
of  Almighty  God  upon  himself.  Like  the 


Tributes  191 

ripened  wheat  bending  its  head  and  waiting 
for  the  scythe,  so  this  humble  head  was  bowed 
and  went  home  in  the  very  manner  he  wished, 
— dying  in  active  service,  like  the  brave  sol- 
dier he  was." 

"O.  J.  STONE." 

"At  a  special  meeting  of  the  pastors  and  officers 
of  the  Gospel  Tabernacle,  New  York  City,  on  Tues- 
day, October  19,  1909,  the  following  resolution  was 
unanimously  and  sympathetically  passed : 

"We,  the  pastors' and  officers  of  the  Gospel  Taber- 
nacle Church,  do  place  on  record  our  most  hearty 
and  appreciative  recognition  of  the  life  and  labor  of 
our  beloved  brother, 

W.   F.   MEMINGER, 

who  fell  asleep  in  Jesus,  suddenly,  on  Wednesday, 
October  6th,  1909.  We  praise  God  for  the  un- 
swerving faith,  the  ardent  love,  the  concentrated  zeal, 
the  consecrated  life,  the  singleness  of  purpose,  the 
evangelical  fervor,  the  love  of  men,  the  regard  for 
God's  truth,  and  the  aim  at  God's  glory,  which  ever 
characterized  our  friend.  He  sleeps,  but  the  aroma 
of  his  unique  and  useful  life  will  influence  all  who 
knew  him  for  many  a  day. 

"We  most  affectionately  commend  to  the  God  of 
all  comfort,  our  sister,  Mrs.  Meminger,  and  pray 
that  she  may  be  cheered  by  the  remembrance  that 
her  loved  one  is  with  Christ;  that  Christ  is  with 
her,  and  that  when  the  shadows  have  fled  away  and 


192     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

the  morning  of  Christ's  glad  return  is  here  she  will 
then  see  her  absent  one  again." 

Signed  on  behalf  of  the  meeting. 

A.   B.   SIMPSON,  Senior  Pastor. 

F.  E.  MARSH,  Acting  Pastor. 

GEO.  H.  A.  McCi-ARE,  Church  Clerk. 

The  following  Resolution  was  passed  by 
the  Board  of  the  Christian  and  Missionary 
Alliance: 

"In  the  circumstances  of  the  departure  on  Oc- 
tober 6th,  of  our  deeply  loved  and  highly  honored 
brother,  Wilbur  F.  Meminger,  we  recognize  signally 
the  adorable  pleasure  of  our  all-wise  and  gracious 
Lord.  In  the  prime  of  life,  in  unquestioned  health, 
with  his  best  service  just  finished,  and  immediately 
after  pouring  out  his  very  heart  blood  in  appeal  to 
the  throng  upon  one  of  New  York's  highways,  he 
was  caught  up  as  suddenly  as  Elijah,  and  no  one 
had  opportunity  to  hinder  heaven's  behest  by  one 
word  of  entreaty  that  our  brother  be  spared  to  us 
longer.  It  would  be  very  rash  to  lament  and  to  de- 
plore this  event,  even  our  own  seeming  irreparable 
loss  cannot  have  been  overlooked  by  the  Lord  of  the 
harvest.  Seldom  are  God's  children  invited  so  per- 
suasively to  'sorrow  not.' 

"While  our  brother  was  most  unaffected  yet  he 
presented  strong  characteristics.  While  unconsci- 
ously modest,  he  was  never  abashed  or  hesitating. 
He  never  required  consideration,  but  was  at  rest 
under  any  conditions.  He  seemed  always  in  per- 
fect readiness,  yet  with  no  uneasy  eagerness.  His 


Tributes  193 

repose  was  complete,  his  action  all  alive.  He  knew 
how  to  be  silent,  and  he  opened  his  mouth  only 
with  profitable  utterance.  Without  mannerism,  his 
manners  were  charming. 

"The  real  secret  of  his  life  as  we  knew  him,  was, 
that  he  was  in  Christ  and  Christ  in  him.  Truly 
Christ  Jesus  was  his  passion,  his  all.  Hence,  what- 
ever he  did,  he  did  with  his  might,  with  love  unto 
Christ. 

"In  every  relation,  capacity  or  effort,  he  was 
undivided,  it  was,  'as  much  as  in  me  is.'  In  preach- 
ing, he  was  every  fiber  a  preacher.  In  private,  he 
was  just  as  much  about  his  Master's  business  seek- 
ing souls.  As  husband,  he  loved  his  wife  even  as 
Christ  loves  the  Church,  even  as  his  own  body.  As 
father,  friend,  counsellor,  in  business  or  in  the  closet, 
by  day  or  by  night,  in  season,  out  of  season,  the 
motive  was,  'Jesus  Only,'  the  action  was  'All  for 
Jesus.'  He  counted  not  himself  his  own,  but  the 
Lord's  and  anybody's,  anything,  by  the  will  of  the 
Lord.  Like  his  outward  attire,  he  was  always  in 
perfect  trim.  His  readiness  was  instant,  his  depar- 
ture was  instant,  his  Glory  was  instant.  Blessed  be 
the  name  of  the  Lord! 

"In  expressible  sympathy  we  sorrow  with  the 
devoted  wife  in  her  widowhood.  We  venture  to 
claim  some  share  in  her  love  and  honor  for  the  de- 
parted one.  But  above  all,  we  rejoice  in  the  mar- 
velous grace  which  enables  her  to  offer  her  widow- 
hood as  her  choicest  vessel  to  the  praise  and  glory 


194     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

of   God,   and  as   her  highest  gift  of  usefulness  to 

other  in  Jesus'  name." 

"Committee : 

WM.  C.   STEVENS, 
DAVID  CREAR, 
A.  B.  SIMPSON, 
F.  H.  SENFT." 


CHAPTER  XVIII. 
WILBUR  MEMINGER'S   TRAITS. 

AS  an  illustration  of  some  of  the  pecu- 
liarities, originalities  and    traits    re- 
ferred to  in  the  above  letters  we  add 
a   few   of  the   announcements   which    M'r. 
Meminger   sometimes   used   to   attract   the 
people  to  his  service.    These  notices  speak 
for  themselves. 

AKRON,  OHIO 

MANY  MORE  SINNERS  WANTED 

AT  221    EAST   EXCHANGE   ST., 

This  Evening  7.30 ;  Sunday,  10.30  and  7  P.M. 
Many  sinners  came  to  the  meetings  last  Sun- 
day, and  many  more  are  wanted  to-night  and 
to-morrow  to  come  to  hear  about  Jesus. 

ALL  KINDS  OF  SINNERS  ARE 
WELCOME. 

Democrat  sinners;  Aristocratic  sinners; 
Prohibition  sinners  and  Republican  sinners; 
Official  sinners  and  Private  sinners;  Lawyer 
sinners  and  Doctor  sinners ;  Editor  sinners  and 
Reporter  sinners ;  Traveling  Men  sinners ;  Ho- 
tel Keeper  sinners  and  Saloon  Keeper  sinners ; 
Drunken  sinners  and  Sober  sinners;  Catholic 
sinners  and  Protestant  sinners;  Christian  Al- 
liance sinners  and  Evangelical  Alliance  sin- 


196     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

ners;  Universalist  sinners  and  Specialist  sin- 
ners; Infidel  sinners;  High-toned  sinners  and 
No-account  sinners ;  Secret  society  sinners  and 
Open  society  sinners;  White  necktied  sinners 
and  Hickory  shirt  sinners;  Grocers,  who  use 
light  weights,  Dry-Goods  merchants,  who  use 
short  yard  sticks,  and  make  their  clerks  lie  for 
their  benefit,  God  especially  invites,  for  "A 
false  balance  is  an  abomination  to  the  Lord." 

HYPOCRITES  WELCOME. 

Also  all  kinds  of  Hypocrites,  without  regard 
to  denominational  affiliation  are  welcome.  The 
Lord  says,  "Woe  unto  you,  hypocrites,"  but 
He  did  not  reject  you. 

God  wants  us  to  be  impartial.  If  any  sinner 
has  been  omitted,  hand  in  your  name  and  we 
will  invite  you  next  time  we  go  to  press. 

"Come  now,  and  let  us  reason  together," 
saith  the  Lord,  "Though  your  sins  be  as  scar- 
let, they  shall  be  as  white  as  snow,  and  though 
they  be  red  as  crimson,  they  shall  be  like 
wool." 

God  has  sent  W.  F.  Meminger,  from  Chi- 
cago, to  tell  you  about  Jesus.  He  knows  Him 
well. 

P.S.  God  is  not  paying  for  these  Ads.  with 
the  proceeds  of  ping-pong  socials,  or  rummage 


Wilbur  Meminger's  Traits          197 

sales,  or  fish  fries,  neither  does  he  beg  for 
them  at  half-price. 

(Advertisement  of  the  Christian  and  Mis- 
sionary Alliance  of  the  Convention.) 

He  said,  "Whosoever  will  may  come,"  so 
you  come  to-night  and  to-morrow.  We 
especially  invite  newspaper  men  and  printers 
who  don't  know  Jesus  as  their  Saviour.  The 
"Printer's  devil"  is  the  only  kind  of  a  devil 
that  can  ever  get  saved.  Also  the  Preachers 
who  don't  know  Jesus,  and  the  Priests, 
especially  the  preacher  in  this  City  who  said 
he  found  it  hard  to  love  Jesus  sometimes. 
When  you  get  to  know  Jesus  it  is  easy  to  love 
Him.  It  is  hard  to  love  somebody  you  don't 
know.  If  anybody  wants  to  know  Jesus  we 
will  be  pleased  to  give  him  an  introduction  to 
Him  to-night  and  to-morrow. 

THE  MAN  JESUS  CHRIST  IS  THE 

MOST  MANLY  AND  LOVABLE 

OF  MEN. 

WHERE  YOU  CAN  FIND  JESUS. 

You  don't  find  Jesus  at  necktie  socials  and 
church  bazaars.  Neither  does  Jesus  attend 
rummage  sales.  The  Master  whom  we  serve 
does  not  wear  second-hand  clothes,  nor  does 
he  want  his  church  to  deal  in  them.  Our  God 


198     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

supplies  all  our  needs.  God  does  not  want 
money,  our  God  has  plenty.  The  silver  and 
the  gold  are  his.  It  will  cost  you  nothing  to 
come  to  hear  about  Jesus.  It  will  cost  you 
nothing  to  get  out,  and  to  get  to  know  Jesus 
will  only  cost  you  your  sins.  If  you  are  not 
a  sinner  but  already  know  Jesus,  we  would 
ask  you  to  read  our  Ad.  in  to-night's  Beacon- 
Journal,  "Fishermen  Wanted,"  God  needs 
Fishermen  as  well  as  sinners. 

THE  INVITATION  TO  ALL. 

The  sick  and  afflicted  and  the  maimed  and 
the  halt  are  especially  invited  to  this  hall,  to 
forsake  their  sins,  and  have  God's  people  pray 
for  their  healing,  in  body  as  well  as  soul,  for 
Jesus  came  to  heal  our  bodies.  The  poor  and 
the  downtrodden,  and  the  oppressed,  and 
those  who  have  no  friends,  and  the  strangers 
in  the  city  are  especially  invited  to  our  Fa- 
ther's house. 

FISHERMEN  WANTED. 

AT  221   EAST  EXCHANGE  STREET 

To-night  at  7.30,  Sunday  10.30  A.M.  &  7.  P.M. 
Don't   mistake   the   number,   you   may   get 
into  the  wrong  door.    There's  a  saloon  on  one 
side  and  a  fishmarket  on  the  other. 


Wilbur  Meminger's  Traits          199 

You  are  not  needed  to  catch  fish;  you  are 
needed  to  catch  men,  for  Jesus  said,  "I  will 
make  you  fishers  of  men."  God  wants  Gos- 
pel fishermen.  God's  people  invite  them,  here- 
in, to  come  and  help  pull  the  Gospel  net.  God 
fishes  with  a  net. 

He  does  not  use  white-bait.  You  cannot 
catch  him  with  ice-cream. 

Our  God  is  a  consuming  fire,  so  He  cannot 
have  any  ice  cream  freezer  attachments  in  his 
business. 

Many  sinners  came  to  this  hall  last  Sunday. 
Many  more  will  come  to-night  and  to-morrow. 
If  you  are  saved  and  know  how  to  point  men 
to  Jesus  Christ,  we  respectfully  ask  you  to 
help  pull  the  Gospel  Net  ashore. 

By  the  Grace  of  God  we  are  trying  to  throw 
the  net  on  the  right  side  of  the  ship. 

God  does  not  bait  the  fish  with  roast 
chicken.  Be  wants  men  to  fish  for  men  and 
leave  the  dressing  of  the  fish  to  him. 

Jesus  twice  drove  live  doves  out  of  the 
temple.  God  does  not  like  dead  squabs  in  a 
pie  any  better  than  in  His  house  to-day.  God's 
only  bait  is  the  matchless  name  and  matchless 
person  of  Jesus  Christ. 

He  said,  "If  I  be  lifted  up  from  the  earth, 
I  will  draw  all  men  unto  me." 


200     "  The  Little  Man  from  Chicago  " 

GOD  SAVES  AND  HEALS. 

We  know  that  God  has  saved  us  and  healed 
our  bodies,  and  that  Jesus  Christ  is  coming 
again.  Every  man  and  woman  in  Akron  who 
believes  this,  and  is  sick  at  playing  at  serving 
God,  is  earnestly  and  prayerfully  invited  to 
help  get  men  and  women  to  know  Jesus.  If 
you  connot  come  pray  for  God's  blessing  upon 
His  work.  Pray  that  He  may  thrust  forth  la- 
borers into  the  harvest. 

No  collections  will  be  taken,  nor  any  one 
asked  for  money.  As  free  as  the  waters  are 
to  the  fish,  so  free  is  this  hall  to  rich  and  poor, 
sinners  and  saints,  for  God  supplies  all  our 
needs  according  to  His  riches  in  Glory  by  Je- 
sus Christ. 

If  you  are  not  a  Gospel  Fisherman,  but  an 
uncaught  fish,  you  are  invited  to  read  the  very 
interesting  Ad.  in  the  Akron  Democrat,  enti- 
tled: "MORE  SINNERS  WANTED."  It  is 
applicable  to  your  case. 

And  Jesus  said  unto  Simon:  "Fear  not; 
from  henceforth  thou  shalt  catch  fish.  And 
when  they  had  brought  their  ships  to  land, 
they  forsook  all  and  followed  Him." 

An  old  Fisherman,  W.  F.  Meminger,  of 
Chicago,  will  help  pull  the  net. 


